Smaller turnout on France's fourth Saturday of action against the high cost of living, with rioting again at the end of the Paris march
The ministry counted 146,000 marchers, the unions 250,000; on Monday Prime Minister Lecornu meets unions and employers.
According to the interior ministry, 146,000 people took to the streets across France on Saturday against the rising cost of living, while unions and youth organisations put the figure at 250,000. In Paris police counted 46,000 marchers, against 65,000 at Thursday's national day of action, Quartz reported. It was the fourth Saturday in a row. The movement began in September among university and secondary school students and, according to VRT NWS, has broadened to demands on purchasing power, public services and tax fairness.
As the Paris march dispersed on Place de la Nation, it again turned into rioting. According to the prefecture, a group of about 200 violent individuals attacked police during an arrest, and officers used tear gas. Tear gas was also used in Lyon, L'Express wrote. By 7 pm, 360 people had been detained across France, including two well-known figures of the yellow vests, who gathered on Place de la Concorde despite a ban. Around 70,000 police officers and gendarmes were deployed.
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu is convening unions and employers on Monday for a social conference at Matignon. The unions want to decide on next steps afterwards, and education unions have already announced a strike for Tuesday. LFI leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon presented his programme at Le Bourget on Saturday and spoke there of a social state of emergency, Euronews reported.