The so-called Third Act of the social protests in France, held this Saturday, has once again filled the streets of the country. According to the authorities' count, more than 320,000 people participated, while the calling organizations—students, trade unions, and 'yellow vests'—raise the figure to 500,000 throughout the territory. The mobilization has generally developed peacefully, although there have been incidents and clashes with the forces of order that have ended with 296 arrests.
The Intersindical Juvenil has calculated an attendance close to half a million demonstrators, below the 800,000 who, according to the organizers, took to the streets last Saturday. On October 24, the authorities put the number of people who participated in the marches at 410,000.
"Despite the closed metro stations, a week of campaigning by the official media aimed at sowing panic and a change in the place of the gathering, the crowd has been just as numerous this week. And just as disciplined," defended the leader of La Francia Insumisa, Jean-Luc Mélenchon.
The left-wing presidential candidate has criticized the lowering of the participation figures, something that, in his opinion, "incites (President Emmanuel) Macron to prolong the standoff." "The higher it is, the harder the fall will be. He will have to give in or leave," he concluded.
The students, who have been at the origin of the current wave of mobilizations, have also directed their reproaches at the Executive. The secretary general of the National Union Force Ouvrière-High Schools and Colleges (SNFOLC), François Pozzo di Borgo, has stressed that, despite the announced commitments, the Government has not "responded to all the demands".
"At the moment, what the government is proposing are mainly adjustments," but that "in essence," it has "not responded to the demands," such as the repeal of the Parcoursup access system or the latest legal reform for baccalaureate and secondary education, he indicated in statements to the BFMTV channel.
The rising cost of living constitutes the other major axis of the protests. "We deprive ourselves of everything," lamented one protester, Emilie, a homemaker and mother of five children. "I have two children in secondary school, in different schools, and their conditions are similar (...). There are no teachers, no material for practical work, no doors in the bathrooms, a roof collapsing on a student (...) it is unacceptable," she added, before denouncing police violence.
296 arrests and strong security deployment
The Ministry of the Interior has reported that, as of 6:00 p.m., 296 arrests had been made nationwide related to the protests, of which 61 were in Paris. In the capital, moreover, 5,114 identity and security checks were carried out.
The department has warned of the presence of "radical elements" "in several cities", expressly citing Bordeaux, Toulouse, Rennes, Lille, Nantes, Marseille or Lyon. "At the end of the demonstration they enter the urban centers with the intention of causing damage and looting", it indicated. "The systematic interventions of the police have prevented them from doing so," although "the confrontations still continue".
The control devices at railway stations, roads and toll booths have made it possible to intercept people carrying improvised weapons, according to the Interior Ministry. This broad operation will remain active throughout the night, with special surveillance in Paris, where it is being applied with particular rigor.
In any case, and especially until noon, the situation has been "generally calm, without notable incidents". "The security measures remain adapted to the situation, especially at the end of the day, in anticipation of Halloween night," the Ministry specified. "The position of the Interior Minister (Laurent Núñez) remains unchanged: the police will act with the utmost firmness against those responsible for the violence and the damage," it warned.
Charges and unrest in Paris and other cities
In Paris, riot police units have carried out charges against groups of demonstrators and objects have been thrown after the official dissolution of the march, which continued as far as Porte de Charenton.
The agents have resorted to tear gas against dozens of hooded and black-clad individuals who were using hammers to lift paving stones and throw them at the Police. According to the authorities, at least one incendiary device has also been thrown.
The Prefecture has explained that a group of several hundred people positioned at the back of the demonstration attacked the agents by throwing objects, including a Molotov cocktail.
Likewise, protests and episodes of tension have taken place in other localities such as Nice, Toulouse, Marseille and Rennes. In Marseille, some 10,000 people have taken to the streets, while in Grenoble 7,300 attendees have been counted, including around 200 members of the so-called 'black block'.
In Bordeaux, the Police have put the number of demonstrators at 11,000, always according to official data, and in Lyon the Prefecture has counted 19,000 participants.
Given this scenario, the French authorities have reinforced the security deployment throughout the country, with nearly 70,000 police officers and personnel deployed to prevent disturbances, looting and acts of vandalism.