The radicalization and violence following the application of the 49.3 mechanism (constitutional device which circumvents the legislator) to forcefully implement the pension reform in France, worries the government, warned by the unions of its dangers and its consequences.
“We had alerted the President of the Republic the risk of tensionsThe silence of the President of the Republic constitutes a serious democratic problem, which inevitably leads to a situation which can become explosive”, said the head of the CGT, Philippe Martinez.
“No one will be able to tell us that we have not alerted the president. Apart from the demonstrations, there are problems” Martinez warned this Saturday. The reform advances the retirement age by two years to 64 from 2030 and adds a year of contributions.
The risk of overflowing is repeatedly mentioned by trade unionists. “A certain insurrection is possible,” said Frederic Ben of CGT Energie, as spontaneous demonstrations multiplied and the Yellow Vests return to the streets the gears already
After two nights of violence and repression in Place de la Concorde, one of the most elegant in the country, a few steps from the Elysee Palace, the National Assembly and the US Embassy, the police prefecture demonstrations prohibited there and on the Champs-Élysées on Saturday afternoons, the symbolic avenue that the Yellow Vests had chosen as their symbol, after their violent protests for two years.
“Due to serious problems of public order and security, any gathering on public roads in and around the Place de la Concorde, as well as in the Champs-Elysées avenue sector It is forbidden” the Police Prefecture announced on Saturday afternoon.
The announcement followed a call through social networks to meet on Saturday evening from “6:00 pm, until the fall of the government.
violence spreads
But the violence extends to other parts of the country. It was Friday night serious riots in Strasbourgwhere the police intervened, and in Lyon, near the Prefecture and the Hotel de Ville. The town hall of the 4th district of Lyon was attacked and looted. More than 60 people were arrested on the Place de la Concorde in Paris.
The marches and rallies continued on Saturday morning throughout the country, spontaneously. In Quimperle 1,200 people gathered, as in Roanne, Saint Etienne, Havre and Périgueaux, Nantes, Annecy, Marseille and Orleans.
Protesters entered the Forum de Les Halles shopping center in the Marais district of Paris on Saturday.They shouted “Paris, rebel”.
Redundant strikes continue. The three most important oil refineries in the country want to exert pressure and are controlled by the workers. The government wants to requisition them but already this weekend They started to stop working.
A fuel shortage is expected starting this weekend. According to Fit Data, as of Friday, 3% were in fuel trouble, 1.9% were in partial failure of at least one product, and 1.1% were in trouble.
From 7 March not a drop of fuel leaves the Donges refinery, according to the CGT. The same is happening at the Petroineos refinery, in Lavera, in the south of France: fuel distribution was stopped on Friday.
The wheelie bin war continues in large French cities. in ParisWe expect to collect 10,000 tons of garbage.But with the big three incineration plants surrounded and determined not to burn the rubbish, no one can pick it up.
The Prefecture of Police has ordered the removal of the waste, but it is proceeding slowly. There are neighborhoods in Paris where they collect it and in the same street but which corresponds to another neighborhood, it is overflowing with waste. The unsanitary crisis grows as spring temperatures rise.
Motion of censure
Two motions of censure have been filed bring down the government by Prime Minister Elizabeth Borne. One is from 20 independent deputies and the other from the ranks of Marine Le Pen.
For the motion to be ratified, the votes of the conservative republicans, of the left gathered in NUPES and of Marine Le Pen’s far right will be fundamental. the motion of censure is unlikely to pass.
To achieve the goal, 32 Republican deputies must vote in favor and it is a figure they have not reached: 287 votes are needed to bring down the government and prevent the adoption of the reform.
Le Pen’s motion will be ignored by the other political forces. But the independents’ transpartisan motion of censure is bound to catch up many votes and includes the vote of some Republican representatives who disagree with the reform.
The reality is that politicians and trade unionists don’t want to bring down Prime Minister Elizabeth Borne, but rather for President Emmanuel Macron to withdraw the pension reform.
The goal in this crisis is not Madame Borne, but to plunge the president into a much deeper and more dangerous crisis and force him to renegotiate, otherwise who will replace Madame Borne and how will they rebuild a government that has lost touch with the electorate that voted to prevent Marine Le Pen from arriving at the Elysée?
Source: Clarin
Mary Ortiz is a seasoned journalist with a passion for world events. As a writer for News Rebeat, she brings a fresh perspective to the latest global happenings and provides in-depth coverage that offers a deeper understanding of the world around us.