France on fire -protesters rage over pension reform

The capital, the epicenter of everything

Protests in France

Protests against Emmanuel Macron's pension reform (which aims to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64) have been increasing in France and escalating into violence. The night of March 23-24 was devastating.

The biggest protests

Paris and Lyon are the two cities with the largest protests in the country.

Against the pension reform

In other cities like Bayonne, however, unrest is making itself felt.

The town hall is on fire

A similar situation existed in Bordeaux, where the town hall and several shops were burned down.

Historical images

And these protests are leaving behind powerful images, like this one from the Place de la Bastille, which is hard to see because of the tear gas that police fired in an attempt to disperse the crowds.

Nights lit by fire

Even fires in the streets are not uncommon. The protesters take advantage of the accumulation of rubbish to cut off traffic on the streets.

Contrasting positions

Despite the protests, positions between the unions and the French government still seem to be far apart.

From 62 to 64 years to retire

In fact, President Emmanuel Macron insists he will push through raising the minimum retirement age from 62 to 64.

Massive protests

At the moment, more than 300 mass protests have been counted across the country.

Clear differences

While the Home Office put the number of demonstrators at just over a million on the ninth day of protests, unions put the number at 3.5 million.

The capital, the epicenter of everything

In Paris, the difference is almost more striking: 119,000 people according to the government and more than 800,000 people according to the unions.

The protests will continue

And it seems that the protests are far from abating but are continuing and growing in number.

Students participate

Student organizations are already reporting that large numbers of students are taking part in the mobilizations.

The country's economy is in jeopardy

In addition, there are the many striking industries that threaten to paralyze the economy and an entire country, such as the fuel industry.

So far no one has given in

The unions are counting on Macron sticking to his idea of implementing the pension reform before the end of the year. They therefore continue with their mobilization.

Macron, very present at the protests

In fact, the President's name was heard frequently at the demonstrations.

"Keep your hands off my pension"

"Macron, keep your hands off my pension" or "I have nothing to lose" are some of the usual slogans at the demonstrations, according to 'Le Monde'.