France is weighing further limits on demonstrations before Saturday, Oct. 24, as President Emmanuel Macron and local officials prepare security measures after large protests and clashes over living costs.
Jean-Didier Berger, France’s minister delegate to the Interior Ministry, said in a BFMTV interview that officials were on heightened alert. He discussed barring demonstrations considered unsafe or undeclared, changing march routes and restricting areas, and said authorities could use such protest controls without declaring a nationwide state of emergency.
Macron made separate remarks after a security council meeting. Local officials would review union requests and could redirect marches, while gatherings requested by other groups could be prohibited, Anadolu Agency reported Thursday.
A transcript published by the Élysée Palace of Macron’s Oct. 21 remarks records him saying authorities had already imposed curfews and gathering bans and would use the law to prevent further disorder.
The latest debate follows demonstrations on Oct. 17 over living costs, fuel prices and school conditions, according to The Associated Press (AP). France’s Interior Ministry counted 550,000 participants, while the CGT union confederation estimated 800,000. Neither account resolved the gap between the figures.
AP said most people marched peacefully, although violence and looting broke out in several cities. The agency also reported that some people view demonstration bans as an infringement on protest rights and compared the unrest with the Yellow Vest demonstrations of 2018 and 2019.
After organizers challenged a police order blocking a Paris demonstration, an administrative court overturned the ban Thursday. Thousands attended the event peacefully, AP reported.
The government had previously weighed targeted restrictions after turnout exceeded its estimate, a subject covered in EconoTimes’ earlier report on the proposed bans. Anadolu reported that Macron plans to convene a defense council Friday, Oct. 23, to review security preparations and consider further decisions before the Saturday rallies.
