Fewer strikers and demonstrators on the third National Day of Protest against the National Pension Reform Project, Tuesday. But the unions are calling for another day of struggle against Emmanuel Macron’s project on Saturday, prolonging a mysterious war.
At the end of the day of strikes and protests, relative violence erupted, on Parisian Place de la Bastille, with plenty of tear gas, police accusations and street violence, poisonous clouds of Molotov cocktails and smoke, confirmed the resolve of the street, that trade union centralism summed up with these declarations of principles: «Reform Unbearable. And we won’t stop until you fully withdraw.” “Working until 64 is a social regression.”
According to the unions, in France (68 million inhabitants), more than two hundred demonstrations gathered “nearly two million people.” The number is down. On January 19 and 31, the same unions claimed between 2 and 2.5 million people.
The Home Office announced more modest figures: between 1.27 and 1.14 million people, on January 31 and 19. some 757,000 demonstrators all over France. A very modest number.
The strikes, which were called for to “paralyze” the country, also appeared relatively more modest, during the day on Tuesday.
On French railways, packing fell from 46.30 to 25% participation. The participation rate in education decreased from 35 to 14%. Participation in public service declines from 12 to 4.5%. On the contrary, it worsened in a sensitive area, fuel distribution, as unions continue to mobilize 56%, fearing supply problems in sectors such as distribution in shopping centers.
While the National Assembly continues to discuss the project, with many verbal confrontations, at first political blood, the unions have called for a new day of demonstrations and protests for next Saturday, the eleventh.
Raymond Sope, former social affairs adviser to two Conservative presidents, Jacques Chirac And Nicolas Sarkozy, He analyzes the underlying crisis in this way: “If Emmanuel Macron succumbs to street pressure, he will be politically dead. His presidency will end badly. At the same time, the president may be wrong to think that the decline in the number of protesters on Tuesday heralds “the end.” The worst can be feared. Everyone knew that the unions called another strike, on Saturday, which is a very good day for demonstrations. Unions fell on Tuesday but could grow on Saturday. The war continues, it is not certain.
