More than 230 demonstrations are organized throughout the country this Tuesday, January 31, 2023, against the pension reform.
The essential
Social protest obeys certain principles and rules which may or may not falter certain unpopular reform projects: if it gains in intensity, if it brings together more and more people in the demonstrations, then the organizers can hope that the balance of power will be favorable to them for the future. If it runs out of steam, on the contrary, protest in the street can quickly appear as an accessory in what is being played out in the political game.
This Tuesday, January 31, the demonstrations organized in some 230 cities in France, to oppose the government’s pension reform, could well send some tangible signals to the executive: if the milestone of 1.5 million demonstrators is reached , then doubt could arise in Matignon, especially since several majority parliamentarians have indicated that they will not vote for the text as it stands. Recall that on January 19, the police had counted 1.2 million people in the streets.
It is therefore quite simple: today, it is the calculators and the mobilization figures that will determine the future nature of the political balance of power. City by city, unions and supporters of the reform will count and add up the forces present. Possible overflows on the sidelines of the processions are also feared. Follow on this page, live, this great day of demonstrations.
11:02 – Nantes: tractors as reinforcements
In the morning, the journalist Martin Hernot du Ouest-France estimated that there are visibly fewer demonstrators than on January 19 at the mirror of water, in Nantes. This morning, however, the procession was joined by farmers who came to demonstrate in tractors.
10:52 – About 30,000 demonstrators in Toulouse
According to France Blue Occitaniapresent in the Toulouse procession, the mobilization would be just as important as that of January 19 with around 30,000 demonstrators.
10:51 – 200 high schools blocked this morning
In Marseille, some high schools were blocked this morning, notably in Saint-Charles, Thiers or Montgrand. In Paris, blockades also took place. At Hélène-Boucher high school, high school students blocked the entrances with activists, elected officials and RATP workers. The militants were dislodged by the police. In total, according to the high school student union La Voix lycéenne, 200 establishments would be blocked on Tuesday, including around thirty in Île-de-France.
10:43 – Start of the rally in Marseille
It is from the Old Port at the bottom of the Canebière that the demonstrators gathered in Marseilles begin to regroup in order to express their dissatisfaction against the pension reform. Some high schools are also blocked by students from the Marseille city reported News Marseillewith a message displayed: “we will not retreat”.
10:33 – Rennes: change of course
While the demonstrators must meet in a few minutes in Rennes, the starting point has been changed. Unlike January 19, which started from the General de Gaulle esplanade, on January 31 the procession will leave from the François Mitterrand mail. Fabrice Lerestif, the secretary general of the departmental union Force Ouvrière explained to Ouest-France that “the mall offers a wider configuration, it makes it possible to accommodate more people”.
10:18 – Departure of the first processions
Several processions have already started in France. This is the case, for example, in Toulouse, Pau or Nice, or Agen.
10:08 – How many demonstrators are expected?
Between 1 million and 1.2 million people are expected to demonstrate on January 31 according to an information note, consulted by European 1. A significant mobilization confirmed by the leader of the Communist Party, Fabien Roussel. “Signs tell us that there will be more people in the street,” said the politician this morning on Public-Senat. He considered that the “number of chartered buses” or the mobilization in the sub-prefectures were signals in favor of a massive demonstration.
09:18 – The Ministry of the Interior has planned a large mobilization of police
Gérald Darmanin said yesterday that 11,000 police and gendarmes would be mobilized today, including 4,000 in Paris. This is a little more than on January 19: it must be said that according to the intelligence service, a note of which was consulted by some national media, risks of excesses were pointed out, particularly in the capital. Groupings of the “Black Bloc” type are particularly feared today.
09:07 – Update on the main events of the morning
Here’s what to have in mind this Tuesday to follow the protests. If, in Paris, the procession starts at 2 p.m. from Place d’Italie, the unions have also organized rallies in many municipalities this morning:
- Rennes: Demonstration at 11 a.m. at the François Mitterrand mail
- Toulouse: Demonstration at 10 a.m. – Saint-Cyprie
- Marseille: Demonstration at 10:30 a.m. at the Old Port
- Pau: Demonstration at 10 a.m. on Place de Verdun
- Caen: Demonstration at 10:30 a.m. on Place Saint Pierre
- Montpellier: Demonstration at 11 a.m. on Place Zeus
- Clermont-Ferrand: Demonstration at 10 a.m. on the Place du 1er-Mai
- Roanne: Demonstration at 10.30 a.m., Côteau bridge
- Saint-Étienne: Demonstration at 10 a.m., at Châteaucreux station
- Nice: Demonstration at 10 a.m. in the Albert 1er gardens
- Draguignan: Demonstration at 10 a.m. at the sub-prefecture
- Toulon: Demonstration at 10 a.m. on Place de la Liberté
- Avignon: Demonstration at 10:30 a.m. on the esplanade of Pont Saint-Bénézet
- Béziers: Demonstration at 10:30 a.m. at the Maison des Syndicats
- Castres: Demonstration at 10.30 a.m. on Place Soult
- Tarbes: Demonstration at 10 a.m. at the Labor Exchange
- Bayonne: Demonstration at 10 a.m. on Place Sainte-Ursule
- Agen: Demonstration at 10 a.m. in the Prefecture park
- Angoulême: Demonstration at 10 a.m. at the SNCF station
- Saint-Nazaire: Demonstration at 10 a.m. gathering on the Place de l’Amérique Latine
- Nantes: Demonstration at 10:30 a.m. at the Water Mirror
- Brest: Demonstration at 10:30 a.m. on Place de la Liberté
- Quimper: Demonstration at 10.30 a.m. on the Place de la Résistance
- Laval: Demonstration at 11 a.m. in Boston Square
- Alençon: Demonstration at 11 a.m. on Place Foch
- Le Havre: Demonstration at 10 a.m. on the course of the Republic
- Rouen: Demonstration at 10 a.m. on the Cours Clémenceau
- Calais: Demonstration at 9.30 a.m. on the Place d’Amiens
- Reims: Demonstration at 10 a.m. at the union house
08:59 – “It has already started strong”, says Philippe Martinez
Asked about BFMTV this Tuesday morning, the secretary general of the CGT was confident, giving himself the objective of mobilizing, convinced of striking a blow in the street: “We will be at least as much, if not more to demonstrate this Tuesday”, he said, while recalling the financial effort to demonstrate today: “When you win the Smic, an hour of strike counts at the end of the month. But there is enthusiasm for today, because it’s important to be there. It has already started strong in many sectors, in refineries, at SNCF, RATP, in metallurgy…” And to add : “The ideological battle is lost for the government. This is why it takes the same determination in the street so that the people are listened to. We have made proposals for better reform, and all our proposals have been swept away out of hand. Which proves that this reform is not essential. It has a majority of French people against it”.
08:50 – An important day for trade unions
Hello everyone and welcome to this live broadcast, which will allow you to follow the demonstrations in the major cities of France, with all the important figures: numbers of people mobilized in the processions, rate of strikers; but also to learn about the highlights of the day: speeches, possible excesses, etc. To begin, here is what to remember from the main events organized in France today, with the map of the gatherings and practical information: