Cities across France saw another round of protests
with up to 782,000 people participating on Monday (Paris counts 112,000
protesters), with police firing teargas in Paris and other cities even as Macron tries to turn the page on the fierce debate over his pension reform plan.
Macron insists the proposed changes, which include raising the retirement age from 62 to 64, were needed to reform a moribund system. But some of the government’s own experts have said the pension system is in relatively good shape and would likely return to a balanced budget even without reforms.
Public anger over the proposed changes was compounded after the government used Article 49.3 – known as the "nuclear option" – to push the reform through parliament without a vote in March, sparking widespread fury.
While
May 1 is marked around the world as a celebration of labour rights,
this year's rallies tapped into broader frustrations as populations
squeezed by inflation and demanding economic justice took to the
streets across Europe and Asia.
French
police have been approved to use drones equipped with cameras for crowd
monitoring at the protests. Rights groups filed a complaint against the
move, saying the use of drones in this manner violates fundamental
rights.
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