French police use tear gas, water cannons in Nantes as Yellow Vests march for 26th weekend in row

in france •  6 years ago 

The defiant Yellow Vests, though in dwindling numbers, have marched across France for the 26th straight weekend. In Nantes and Lyon the rallies ended up in clashes between the demonstrators and police.
A week after the lowest turnout since the movement began as a protest against a planned fuel tax hike in November, the Yellow Vests, who are now protesting President Emmanuel Macron’s broader reform agenda and supposed indifference towards the fate of the ordinary French people, once again took to the streets of the French cities.

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FILE PHOTO. © Reuters / Charles Platiau

Nantes and Lyon saw some major demonstrations on Saturday, as thousands of people joined the rallies organized by the protest movement in both cities. In Lyon, 2,500 people hit the streets while in Nantes the police put the turnout at 2,200, according to the French media.

While the processions were largely peaceful, some clashes between the protesters and the police did erupt as some black-hooded demonstrators hurled bottles at the officers and smashed shop windows in Nantes. Police responded with tear gas and also used water cannons to disperse the crowd.

https://twitter.com/StephanePajot44/status/1127244986406395904

Some Yellow Vest movement activists also used the occasion to make some political statements ahead of the forthcoming European Parliament elections. Jerome Rodrigues, a well-known figure within the movement, who lost his eye after it was hit by a rubber bullet fired by police, urged the French to use the vote as a way to show their dissatisfaction with Macron’s policies.

“I'm calling on Europeans to make an anti-Macron vote, even if he just finishes in second place, it would take him down a notch, bring him back down to earth so he can serve us instead of the rich,” he said in Lyon.

Demonstrations were also held Montpellier, where some 1,300 people took to the streets, and Bordeaux, which saw some 700 people joining the Yellow Vests march.

Original: https://www.rt.com/news/459084-yellow-vests-protest-france/

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