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New protests test French government's resolve on pension reform

French unions said more than 2.5 million protesters took the the streets across the nation on Saturday to keep up the pressure on the government over its deeply unpopular pensions reform.

La rédaction de Mediapart

This article is freely available.

French unions said more than 2.5 million protesters took the the streets across the nation on Saturday to keep up pressure on the government over its deeply unpopular pensions reform, reports RFI.

The Interior Ministry put that figure at 963,000, but admitted that protest numbers had swelled for the fourth day of demonstrations.  

Unions and political opponents of President Emmanuel Macron's plan to raise the retirement age to 64 were looking to rally momentum by getting families and employees who haven't been unable to strike out onto streets across the country.

More than 200 marches were held in cities and towns as demonstrators sang, danced and vented their anger as the government's determination to forge ahead with its pensions project.

The hardline CGT union said 500,000 people marched through Paris, where police intervened after some protesters damaged buildings and set fire to a car. 

Read more of this report from RFI.

See also:

'You can't work underground over the age of 60': why Marseille's sewer staff oppose pension reform

Why the French government must drop its brutal and unfair pension reforms