Tear gas in Paris and Marseille as school protests grow across France
BBC World
BBC World
Original Source
Hundreds of thousands of French citizens took to the streets in a wave of protests that expanded from high school students to their parents, university students, and labor unions. Police deployed tear gas in Paris and Marseille as demonstrators demanded improved school resources and reduced police repression.
Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets across France, as a wave of protests by high-school pupils spread to their parents, university students and unions.
Crowds of teenagers marched from the Place de la République in Paris, calling for more resources for schools, and what they called less repression from police.
Police clashed with demonstrators in Lyon, used tear gas in Paris and Marseille and water cannon in Rennes, but there was little of the serious trouble that marred previous protests.
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu condemned the earlier violence and said since the protests had begun 215 students and 85 staff had been hurt as well as 715 police officers.
The government said there had been disruption in 891 high schools on Tuesday - almost a quarter of all lycées - and said more than 250,000 demonstrators had taken to the streets during the day.
Students' unions put the number at 450,000, and said the number of high schools blockaded was 1,800 on what the protesters dubbed "Act Three" of their movement.
In Marseille, thousands of demonstrators moved around this city, stopping momentarily to chant before moving on as police changed direction.
A group of masked protesters grabbed bollards and bins and tried to barricade themselves off from police. Riot officers fired tear gas, and the protesters dispersed.
"Most of us aren't violent," said Alissa, a student in Marseille. "We're going to the streets because they've closed our schools... schools are falling apart."
Her friend, Sacha, said the ceilings in Marseille's schools were leaking and conditions were generally rather poor, "so we can't really work a lot of time". "We will keep doing this until good measures are taken," he added.
What began with local anger at overcrowded classrooms, a lack of teaching staff and dilapidated school buildings in the northern Paris suburb of Seine-Saint-Denis in mid-September has since spread across the country, and extended to some universities too.
Late on Tuesday, the French interior ministry said a total of 6,547 had been stopped or arrested by police since 28 September.
Tuesday's protests drew people of all ages. One couple in their 70s, Alain and Michèle, joined the march in central Paris, to show their support for young students, explaining that as former teachers they understood the problems that France's education system was facing.
"We are the grandparents of three students who are all mobilised. They have protested peacefully in front of their respective high schools in Paris in recent days, but they were still tear-gassed," Alain told the BBC, his voice trembling.
Additional reporting by Manon Prat in Paris.
Crowds of teenagers marched from the Place de la République in Paris, calling for more resources for schools, and what they called less repression from police.
Police clashed with demonstrators in Lyon, used tear gas in Paris and Marseille and water cannon in Rennes, but there was little of the serious trouble that marred previous protests.
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu condemned the earlier violence and said since the protests had begun 215 students and 85 staff had been hurt as well as 715 police officers.
The government said there had been disruption in 891 high schools on Tuesday - almost a quarter of all lycées - and said more than 250,000 demonstrators had taken to the streets during the day.
Students' unions put the number at 450,000, and said the number of high schools blockaded was 1,800 on what the protesters dubbed "Act Three" of their movement.
In Marseille, thousands of demonstrators moved around this city, stopping momentarily to chant before moving on as police changed direction.
A group of masked protesters grabbed bollards and bins and tried to barricade themselves off from police. Riot officers fired tear gas, and the protesters dispersed.
"Most of us aren't violent," said Alissa, a student in Marseille. "We're going to the streets because they've closed our schools... schools are falling apart."
Her friend, Sacha, said the ceilings in Marseille's schools were leaking and conditions were generally rather poor, "so we can't really work a lot of time". "We will keep doing this until good measures are taken," he added.
What began with local anger at overcrowded classrooms, a lack of teaching staff and dilapidated school buildings in the northern Paris suburb of Seine-Saint-Denis in mid-September has since spread across the country, and extended to some universities too.
Late on Tuesday, the French interior ministry said a total of 6,547 had been stopped or arrested by police since 28 September.
Tuesday's protests drew people of all ages. One couple in their 70s, Alain and Michèle, joined the march in central Paris, to show their support for young students, explaining that as former teachers they understood the problems that France's education system was facing.
"We are the grandparents of three students who are all mobilised. They have protested peacefully in front of their respective high schools in Paris in recent days, but they were still tear-gassed," Alain told the BBC, his voice trembling.
Additional reporting by Manon Prat in Paris.
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Source: BBC World
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