NOS News•
Today, public life in France is once again disrupted by mass demonstrations and strikes because of President Macron’s pushed through pension reforms. “The best answer we can give the president is that millions of people will take to the streets and strike,” said CGT union leader Philippe Martinez.
The unions want to demonstrate massively again today. Demonstrations are planned in many cities, including Paris, Bordeaux, Lyon, Lille, Nantes, Strasbourg and Montpellier.
Today’s strikes are severely disrupting public transport and airports are also being affected. At Paris-Orly, a third of flights are canceled, writes Le Figaro. At other airports, one in five flights do not depart. The newspaper also reports a blockade of terminal 1 at Charles de Gaulle airport. Due to the unannounced demonstration, access to the terminal has been blocked for motorists.
Roads are also blocked. Images on social media show burning piles of rubble on a motorway near Toulouse, in southwest France:
Today, primary school teachers, among others, are also laying down their jobs. In addition, the strikes at the oil depots and garbage collectors continue.
From September, the retirement age in France will gradually increase from 62 to 64, much to the dismay of many French people. President Macron’s government narrowly survived a no-confidence vote this week.
Last week, Prime Minister Borne and Macron pressed parliament to raise the retirement age. Yesterday, Macron responded to the criticism and outrage for the first time in an extensive TV interview.
Smug and abusive
In the interview, Macron said that he really sees no other option than to raise the retirement age. The current system, he says, is no longer in balance “and the longer we wait, the worse it gets,” he said. The interview was viewed by 10 million people.
Alternatives to reform such as cutting pensions, raising taxes or pushing the country deeper into debt are all undesirable, according to Macron.
Reactions to the performance were not positive. Critics called the president’s comments smug and insulting, accusing him of lacking realism.
