Emmanuel Macron’s intervention did nothing to appease: the ninth day of strikes and demonstrations against the pension reform saw a clear rebound in participation. A total of 1.08 million people marched in France, according to the Ministry of the Interior, 3.5 million according to figures from the CGT.
> L’Express summarizes the essentials of this day
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Tensions and a record in Paris, clear rebound in mobilization in the provinces
A week after a lackluster eighth round, the processions were once again full. The mobilization notably broke a record in Paris, where 119,000 demonstrated, according to figures from the Ministry of the Interior. According to the count by the cabinet Occurrence carried out for a media collective, including AFP, 83,000 people marched in the capital. The CGT counts 800,000 demonstrators in the capital.
The Parisian demonstration was peppered with violence, hundreds of radical elements dressed in black notably smashed windows and street furniture. Shortly before 5 p.m., 14 people were arrested, mainly for carrying prohibited weapons and participating in a group to commit damage and violence, according to the police headquarters.
In Rouen, the prefecture counted 14,800 demonstrators, a record since the start of the social movement, while the CGT claimed 23,000.
Participation also up sharply in Lyon (22,000 to 55,000), Brest (20,000 to 40,000) or Montpellier (18,000 to 40,000), where the mobilization nevertheless remained below the peaks recorded during the previous days, especially on January 31 and March 7.
The revival compared to the previous day of mobilization was also observed in medium-sized cities such as Agen (4,000 to 6,000), Laval (5,200 to 9,600) or Valenciennes (3,100 according to the police).
While the estimates most often varied by a factor of two, some cities stood out with more pronounced differences, notably Saint-Etienne (6,200 to 35,000), Nice (5,200 to 40,000) and, as usual, Marseille where the prefecture counted 16,000 demonstrators, seventeen times less than the 280,000 advanced by the CGT.
15.5% strikers in the state civil service
Slightly more than one agent in six (15.5%) is on strike this Thursday at midday in the state civil service, according to the Ministry of the Civil Service. This participation among the 2.5 million agents of the State Civil Service is up sharply compared to the previous day of mobilization during the week, March 15, during which it had fallen to less than 3%.
In the territorial public service (nearly two million agents), the rate of strikers reached 6.5%, against 2.2% on March 15, while the mobilization reached 8.1% in the hospital public service (1 .2 million agents), compared to 4.5% previously.
The disrupted rail
The provisional rate of strikers reached 25% this Thursday noon at the SNCF, according to a union source, which evokes a lower participation than at the beginning of the movement but which is regaining strength. In detail, there are 56% strikers among drivers, 39% among controllers, 26.5% among switchers, 31% on equipment and 14% among executives, she said.
Only half of the TGV Inoui and Ouigo and a third of the TER are running. As for the metro, only automated lines (1 and 14) will run normally. The RATP plans one in two trains for lines 7, 7bis, 9, 10 and 13 and one in three trains for lines 2, 3, 3bis, 5, 6, 8 and 12. Regional transport networks should also be affected such as the Ligne d’Azur network in Nice.
Since 6 a.m. this Thursday morning, the bus depot in the town of Pantin, in Seine-Saint-Denis, has been blocked by several dozen demonstrators. Among them, several dozen union delegates from the CGT who are also trying to take over the neighboring road.
Several hundred demonstrators protesting against the pension reform invaded the Gare de Lyon tracks in Paris, interrupting the movement of trains, noted an AFP journalist.
In the Paris region, very strong disturbances are also indicated on the side of the Transilien lines. Line K will not run during off-peak hours. One out of two RER will run on lines A and B. One out of three trains is scheduled for RER C and lines H, J, L, N, P and U. Two out of five trains on average are announced for RER D and line R. For the RER E, one train out of five on average is planned.
strikes in education
The ninth day of action against the pension reform results in a rate of striking teachers of 21.41%, including 23.22% in primary and 19.61% in secondary (colleges and high schools), according to the Ministry of Education figures.
These rates are below those of the unions: the Snuipp-FSU, the leading organization in nursery and elementary schools, estimates that between 40 and 50% of primary school teachers are on strike and the Snes-FSU, the leading secondary school union , gave Thursday a rate of 50% of strikers among teachers and other education personnel.
Dozens of high schools and universities are also the scene Thursday of protest actions against the pension reform throughout France, at the call of various youth organizations, noted AFP. In Paris, access to several high schools was blocked by young people, often perched on garbage cans, in particular at Louis-le-Grand (5th arrondissement), Rodin (12th), Jules Ferry (9th), Racine (8th), Bergson or Brassens (19th).
Kerosene supply disruptions
The supply of kerosene to Ile-de-France and its airports by Normandy “is becoming critical” due to strikes in refineries, said Thursday the Ministry of Energy Transition which is ready to requisition strikers.
Given this situation, the government has “issued a requisition order” with regard to the strikers at the TotalEnergies refinery in Normandy, which was shut down last weekend and where fuel shipments are blocked; “but it has not been decided to notify it at this stage,” the ministry added. “The government is monitoring the situation hour by hour and department by department with professionals and prefects. We are intervening in a targeted manner to unblock deposits that are obstructed by demonstrators. As soon as requisitions cannot be avoided, we will take our responsibilities “, declared the Minister of Energy Transition, Agnès Pannier-Runacher.
For its part, the General Directorate of Civil Aviation has been warning airlines for several days that the kerosene reserves at Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle and Paris-Orly airports are “under tension”, encouraging them to take their precautions, publishing two “Notices for Air Missions” (NOTAM) to this effect.
Fewer planes in the sky
In the air sector, the Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGAC) has asked airlines to cancel 30% of flights at Orly and 20% at Lyon, Marseille and Toulouse, following the mobilization of air traffic controllers against the reform. retirements. The mobilization is therefore up slightly, the DGAC having asked the companies to cancel Tuesday and Wednesday 20% of their flights to Paris-Orly and Marseille-Provence (south-east).
Disturbances that will continue tomorrow since the DGAC is still asking companies to cancel 30% of their flights again at Paris-Orly on Friday and 20% at other airports due to the strike by air traffic controllers against the pension reform, this administration announced on Thursday. The airports concerned in the region by the suppression of one in five flights will be Marseille-Provence, Bordeaux-Mérignac and Lyon-Saint-Exupéry, and this both Friday and Saturday, said the DGAC in a press release. At Orly, the situation will improve on Saturday for travelers with 15% of canceled flights, according to the same source.
The Eiffel Tower and the Palace of Versailles closed
The Eiffel Tower and the Palace of Versailles, among other tourist places in Paris and its region, were again closed to the public on Thursday on the occasion of the ninth day of national action against pension reform. The Arc de Triomphe, at the top of the Champs-Elysées, was also closed.
“Due to the national strike movement, the Eiffel Tower is currently closed,” read the monument’s website. “Access to the Parvis remains open and free. Visitors with e-tickets for today (Thursday) are invited to check their mailbox.” “Due to a national social movement, the Estate and the Palace of Versailles are closed this Thursday, March 23, 2023”, also indicated the site of the castle. The night at the Musée d’Orsay was also “cancelled”, with a scheduled closing “at 6 p.m.”. The Louvre Museum was open until 6 p.m.
Electricity cut in the morning at the Ve town hall in Paris
The town hall of the 5th arrondissement of Paris worked without electricity Thursday morning, the ninth day of action against the pension reform, after a voluntary cut announced by the CGT and which Enedis ended at midday. “The town hall of the 5th arrondissement of Paris, whose mayor is Florence Berthout who is in favor of the #ReformeDesRetraites, was put in energy sobriety this (Thursday) morning by the Robins Hood of energy”, affirmed on Twitter Karim Abed, secretary general CGT energy of Ouest Île-de-France.
The town hall of this central district of Paris, which includes the Latin Quarter, found itself without electricity when it opened to the public at 9 a.m., Florence Berthout, the mayor of Horizons, an ally of Emmanuel Macron, told AFP. .