Paris shuts down, braces for new riots
PARIS — France mobilized tens of thousands of police officers and made plans to shut down beloved tourist attractions like the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre on the eve of antigovernment protests that authorities feared could be even more violent than ones that have crippled the country for weeks.
The drastic security measures will put central Paris in a lockdown on Saturday, disrupting the plans of tens of thousands of tourists and residents.
Hundreds of shops in Paris planned to shut their doors as well, preferring to lose business during the key holiday shopping period rather than have their windows smashed in and their merchandise looted, as happened to many Paris stores last Saturday when an antigovernment protest over rising taxes turned into a riot.
On Friday, workers across Paris lugged pieces of plywood and hammered boards over the windows of shops and businesses — making the plush Champs-Elysees neighborhood appear like it was bracing for a hurricane.
French President Emmanuel Macron has stayed out of the public eye all week, leaving his unpopular government to try to calm the nation. In response, “Macron, resign!” has become the main slogan of the “yellow vest” demonstrators.
The protesters’ anger has been directed at the French leader, who they feel has been the “president of the rich” and is out-of-touch with ordinary people.
Macron’s pro-business reforms have aimed to make the French economy more competitive globally, but French workers see the changes as brutal and weakening their rights.
Macron, whose popularity plummeted in recent months, is also widely seen as arrogant, which comes out when he tells an unemployed man he can find a job if he “crosses the street,” or advising a retiree not to complain.
The 40-year-old leader mostly spent the week holding closed-door meetings in the Elysee presidential palace, which many protesters see as an ivory tower where he is hiding away from the people.
The president’s office said he would not speak before Saturday’s antigovernment protests.
Macron doesn’t face re-election until 2022 and his party has a strong majority in parliament — yet his ability to pass sweeping reforms may be weakened by the yellow vests movement. Samuel Petrequin and Sylvie Corbet are Associated Press writers.