Tearful faceoff
More than 1,300 people taken into custody as pressure builds on Macron
Paris tourist sites reopened, workers cleaned up broken glass and shop owners tried to put the city on its feet again on Sunday, a day after running battles between yellowvested protesters and riot police left 71 injured and caused widespread damage to the French capital.
Interior Ministry Christophe Castaner said on Sunday that more than 1,200 people were taken into custody around France and 135 people were injured nationwide.
The movement, sparked by anger over a proposed carbon tax to curb climate change by French President Emmanuel Macron’s government, has spread to other issues, in particular the income inequality and high living cost.
An estimated 10,000 yellow-vest protesters showed up in Paris and 125,000 across France on Saturday, according to Castaner.
Meanwhile, about 8,000 police officers were deployed in Paris, compared with 4,600 a week earlier, and nationwide nearly 90,000 officers were deployed. The huge presence was aimed at preventing the violence and vandalism of the previous week, regarded as the worst in the French capital for decades.
Police closed many streets in the city center on Saturday, while armored vehicles, water cannon and officers on horseback took up positions in the city.
While most of the tens of thousands of demonstrators in Paris were peaceful on Saturday, it turned violent in the afternoon, with police firing tear gas and rubber bullets and using water cannons to disperse protesters and control the situation.
Celine Fonarou and four of her friends came to the protest from Normandy. She wanted to protest against taxes and poverty.
“Life is difficult, so difficult,” she told China Daily, adding that they are peaceful protesters.
Michel-Roch Faci, from the island of Corsica, said he is protesting against President Macron. “We want to change not only the taxes, we need a new revolution for the people,” he said.
Faci, formerly a member of the military, said he was a pacifist. “We don’t want to smash the police. But if we have to fight, we shall fight,” he said.
A man who wanted to be identified only by his first name, Aurelien, said that he did not make the minimum wage and every month, there was a shortfall of 300 euros ($341).
“We are protesting against the government raising taxes everywhere,” he said.
Major tourist attractions, such as the Louvre Museum and Eiffel Tower, were closed on Saturday, as were more than 30 subway stations in the city center. Shops near the protest site, especially near the ChampsElysees, were closed, with protective boards on windows following the vandalism last weekend.
Despite the fact it was expected to be a busy Christmas shopping weekend, Paris on Saturday looked nothing like a tourist attraction or a shopping paradise.
Opera Mandarin, a Chinese restaurant, was among a few that were still open in the Opera area. A waitress observed the situation outside while a waiter inside said they were deeply worried about the possible vandalism by protesters. Dinner reservations for four groups were canceled due to the protest.
France’s top soccer league postponed six matches across the country, including in Paris, Toulouse, Angers and Nimes.
In Toulouse, conflict erupted between protesters and police, where thousands of demonstrators joined in three marches which merged into a single procession that police tried to force out of the city center, AFP reported.
Police said there were also altercations in Bordeaux, Marseille, Lyon and around 2,000 people marched in Nantes and faced police who used tear gas. In Marseille, police confirmed 42 arrests as 2,000 yellow vest protesters marched through the city to join a climate change demonstration, bringing the total to 10,000 people.
The yellow vests also organized a series of blockades on roads throughout France, especially at some strategic points of the country’s motorway network as well as two main entrances from Spain, Euronews reported.
The protests also spread to neighboring Belgium on Saturday, where more than 400 people were detained on Saturday, according to a Reuters report.