106,000 demonstrators across France took part in Saturday’s gilets jaunes marches, protesting president Emmanuel Macron’s fuel tax rises.
Participants in the gilets jaunes marches had been told to stay away from the Champs Élysées and Place de la Concorde and to remain at the designated protest site, the Champs de Mars; but around 5,000 of the 8,000 protesters in Paris made their way to the Champs Élysées regardless, where they sang the national anthem and built barricades. Some protesters – alleged to have included far right activists and casseurs (hooligans) – threw paving stones and other missiles at police, who deployed tear gas, water cannons, pepper spray and eventually bulldozers to remove protesters and barricades.
By Saturday night the barricades had been burned, windows in the area had been smashed and traffic lights had been uprooted. 130 protesters were arrested across France, 42 of them in Paris; 19 civilians and five police officers were injured in the confrontations. Government officials blamed the violence at the gilets jaunes marches on infiltration by the far right, with interior minister Christophe Castaner accusing nationalist leader Marine Le Pen of encouraging protesters to go to the Champs Élysées.
The gilets jaunes marches, referred to as an “insurrection” on French television, have garnered the support of around 80 per cent of the French people, most of whom think Macron should abandon his plans to raise taxes on fossil fuels. The president’s support is at an historic low of 26 per cent, with critics saying his government prioritises the needs of the wealthy and businesses over those of rural and low income citizens.
Macron said yesterday that the French government must provide a “clear answer” to the concerns expressed at the gilets jaunes marches on fuel costs and income inequality, although the government remains committed to implementing the fuel tax rises, due to take effect at the start of 2019.
