Police
officers have clashed with protesters and deployed tear gas in
several French cities, according to local media. Arrests were made as
thousands of people took to the streets to continue demonstrations
against labor reforms.
Photos
posted on Twitter showed demonstrators making their way through
clouds of tear gas as they marched through the streets of several
French cities, including Nantes, Lyon, Rennes, and Paris. In Rennes,
police deployed tear gas on demonstrators throwing projectiles on a
street leading to the square of the Parliament of Brittany.
About 9,000
demonstrators gathered on the streets of Nantes, according to police.
An image posted on Twitter showed a Porsche and a scooter which had
been set on fire. Windows could also be seen smashed across the city.
The mayor of
Nantes, Johanna Rolland, has condemned the incidents as "unacceptable
acts of small groups whose express purpose is to commit violence,"
French news outlet 20 Minutes reported. A photo from Quimper showed
demonstrators staging a sit-in while waving flags and holding signs
against the labor reforms.
Demonstrations
against the labor law reforms since they were put forward by Labor
Minister Myrian El Khomri. The government says the reforms – which
focus on fighting unemployment by loosening protections on France's
35-hour work week and layoffs, and reducing overtime bonuses – will
help curb the country's high unemployment rate. Protesters and
workers' unions, however, say the government wants to make it easier
and less costly for employers to lay off workers. France's
unemployment rate hit a record high last month, pushing jobless
numbers to 3.591 million people, according to the Labor Ministry.
Full
report, pictures & videos:
Related:
Comments
Post a Comment