Marseille – The French government sought to draw a line Monday under weeks of protests that have been marred by violence, with President Emmanuel Macron headed to Marseille and the prime minister to meet with students demanding better school conditions.
France has been rocked by widespread anger over the rising cost of living, with nationwide demonstrations on October 17 degenerating into some of the country’s worst rioting in years.
The demonstrations have come at a critical moment for France, six months ahead of a presidential election to replace centrist Macron.
The frontrunner — far-right leader Marine le Pen — held an election rally in Orleans Sunday, a day after yet more demonstrations also saw some violent clashes on the sidelines.
She vowed to “restore the rule of law” if elected next year. Polls show the protests and ensuing disorder have boosted her support, as the government and Macron faced sharp criticism over the unrest.
Authorities have admitted to security and intelligence failures that paved the way for the clashes, large-scale looting and vandalism of public property that erupted on October 17, and had stepped up security for Saturday’s protests.
While Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said the outcome of Saturday’s rallies was more “positive” than a week ago, street violence still erupted in the French capital and a number of other cities including Marseille.
The Elysee said Macron would visit the city hall in Marseille, France’s second-largest city, on Monday, after it was damaged in the protest violence on October 17.
He was also due to meet shopkeepers who had fallen victim to looting and vandalism, the Elysee said.
“He will also pay tribute to and thank the internal security forces that helped restore republican order,” the presidency said.
After this weekend’s protests, many shopfronts in the city centre were still boarded up early Monday, just hours before Macron’s arrival.
Macron’s visit was intended to demonstrate that “the state is present, standing firm and fulfilling its mission to protect,” an aide said.
– ‘High level of violence’ –
A total of 1,435 people were arrested on the sidelines of the most recent weekend protests, Nunez said on Monday.
“The day was brought under control and there were no serious incidents,” he told broadcaster BFMTV.
“Nevertheless, we saw a very high level of violence directed at the internal security forces,” Nunez added.
He said that 267 police officers and gendarmes were injured, along with 150 protesters, including three who were seriously hurt in Toulouse, Reims and Clermont-Ferrand.
The unrest followed weeks of demonstrations by students campaigning for better learning conditions.
Several teenage protesters have been seriously injured and thousands arrested.
The police response to their demonstrations, which included blockades of schools, has been criticised as heavy-handed and sparked a broader movement against the cost of living and police violence.
In Paris on Monday, Lecornu was to meet student leaders, with National Education Minister Edouard Geffray and Higher Education Minister Philippe Baptiste joining him for the talks. Following that meeting, Geffray and Baptiste will hold a news conference.
Macron already met representatives of secondary school pupils last Friday, but they emerged from the talks urging students to keep protesting until the government put forward concrete proposals to address their demands.
On top of the protests, the country was last week shaken by a shooting that killed one person and wounded five, including a 12-year-old girl, outside Paris.
Macron has branded the shooting a “racist terrorist attack”, as most of the victims were from foreign backgrounds.
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