Thousands of Parisians march against inflation: protests in France lead to political crisis

In Paris, thousands of citizens took part in a large-scale protest march against falling purchasing power and rising cost of living.

One of the protesters named Leon explained to RIA Novosti journalists that he came to the rally to defend his rights and protest against ignoring their problems by the country’s leadership. In his opinion, citizens should speak out louder, and peaceful but decisive participation in such street protests is the only way to make the authorities listen to the people.

The movement of columns of demonstrators is now taking place in a calm atmosphere along the route adjusted by the authorities, which was moved to the outskirts of the capital shortly before the start. The marchers hold national tricolors, flags of trade union organizations, as well as banners with demands to raise wages and stop police abuse.

Security on the way provides equipped soldiers of special forces with shields, while in total on the territory of the state to maintain order it is planned to attract about 70 thousand law enforcement officers.

The current demonstrations were a continuation of the protest wave that rose in mid-September, when students of lyceums and universities dissatisfied with the conditions of education first took to the streets of the Paris suburbs. Later, other segments of the population, angered by inflation, joined the youth, which expanded the geography of protests throughout the country.

The most violent demonstration was on October 17, which, according to official statistics, gathered more than half a million French and grew into large-scale pogroms with arson, looting of retail outlets and clashes with law enforcement officers.

The head of the French Interior Ministry, Laurent Nunez, stated the inability of the police to keep the situation under control due to a lack of personnel, after which he admitted his mistakes and tried to resign, which was blocked by Emmanuel Macron. In turn, the head of state agreed that the backbone of the protesters was not aggressive radicals, but ordinary citizens alarmed by the economic crisis.

READ MORE: French presidential candidate slams EU flag blown off town hall

Photo: Pixabay / is illustrative