"Manu Ciao", "49.3 or not, the reform will not pass". Thursday, March 23, it is a huge human tide that came to demonstrate in Paris for the ninth day of mobilization against the pension reform. Some 800,000 people took to the streets, according to figures put forward by the unions, 119,000 according to the Ministry of the Interior - a record since the beginning of the movement. Beyond the contested bill, many came to shout their anger a week after the appeal of 49.3 by the government. In the crowd, the voices denounced "the contempt" of Emmanuel Macron, an "authoritarian drift" and "a democracy in danger".
All along the procession, starting from a square of the Bastille black of people around 14 p.m., the demonstrators chanted the slogans that have become usual during these days of mobilization - "Metro-work-vault", "Retreat before the arthirtre" or "You put us 64, we may you 68".
"Macron, the contemptuous"
This time other placards were omnipresent, with two main targets: Emmanuel Macron and Elisabeth Borne. The head of state portrayed as a devil, a monster where Louis XVI rubbed shoulders with a Prime Minister decked out in horns and claws.
"Macron, the contemptuous", brandish for example Valérie and Magali, taking up posters offered by the French Communist Party and which are very successful. "Emmanuel Macron is in his gilded office of the Elysee, above all of us and unable to understand the arduousness of the world of work today," denounce together the two women of 57 and 54 years. "He categorically refuses to hear that our working conditions have been deteriorating for years - with ever less budget and staff. We can't physically work for two more years!"
The two friends, a PE teacher and secretary in an archive service in the Paris suburbs, demonstrated every week against the project. "We thought we would stop after the last protest because our salaries are starting to suffer. But when we saw that the government was resorting to 49.3, totally disregarding the voice of the French, we changed our minds," the two women continued. Before hammering, decided: "Now, we will continue as long as it takes."
Valérie and Nathalie demonstrated every week against the pension reform. "We will continue for as long as it takes," they say. © Cyrielle Cabot, France 24
Michel, meanwhile, brandishes a sign just as explicit on which can read: "From the top of the Elysee, ersatz of Jupiter, the people gathered, will descend you to earth," we can read. "We have had enough of a president who thinks he is Louis XIV, who does not listen, who thinks he is the only one who knows what is good for the country," said the 72-year-old retiree. "Before, even when they were bad, presidents at least knew how to listen, and back down when they had to. Today they are simply on another planet."
More than the pension reform, it is this recourse to 49.3 that pushed Marie-Lou and Aurélien to take to the streets. If they are opposed to the reform, they had not gone on strike or demonstrated until now. "But today we are here because it is out of the question that we accept this denial of democracy. Beyond the bill itself, it is really this passage in force that we came to denounce, "they explain. "For months, the government seems to be doing what it wants and anger is piling up. This is the straw that breaks the camel's back. Enough is enough."
Marie-Lou and Aurélien demonstrate for the first time as part of the pension reform. © Cyrielle Cabot, France 24
"We can still make the government bend"
In the compact crowd that tries to gradually rally the Place de la République and then the Place de l'Opéra under the sun and the crash of firecrackers, the demonstrators interviewed admit to oscillating between "anger", "determination", "frustration", but also, for some, an ounce of resignation.
"I had never demonstrated before the pension reform. But this project is so unfair and unequal that for the first time, I decided to take to the streets," says Valérie. At 54 years old, this notary clerk says she is "disgusted" and "sickened" by the use of 49.3, and admits to being half-word not very confident for the future. "Emmanuel Macron totally refuses to hear us. I am pessimistic. I don't think he will give in, but I'm protesting anyway because I want to force him to hear our anger," she said.
"Before the pension reform, I had never demonstrated," says Valérie. "Today, I no longer believe at all that we will be able to stop the reform. But I'm here anyway, to make my anger heard." pic.twitter.com/gI6ZeliOER
— Cyrielle Cabot (@CyrielleCab) March 23, 2023
According to her, the last hope lies rather in the democratic tools available to the opposition, including the referendum of shared initiative. Submitted Monday, March 19 to the Constitutional Council by the opposition, this weapon at the disposal of deputies provides for the possibility of organizing a popular consultation on a bill proposal. And the procedure would block the implementation of this reform for nine months.
>> Demonstrations, Constitutional Council, referendum... What is the follow-up to the pension reform?
Greg and Philippe, for their part, refuse to give in to the gloom. "We can still make things happen. The street has already bent a government even after a law has been passed. We can start again," say these two CGT activists, referring to the law on CPEs in 2006, which was finally abandoned in the face of pressure from the street. "Precisely, we must mobilize even more. Everyone needs to come and express their frustration at the government's contempt."
Greg and Philippe, CGT activists, refuse to give in to pessimism about pension reform. "The government can still bend," they say. © Cyrielle Cabot, France 24
"Macron is straight in his boots, but so are we. He plays wear and tear, but we will hold. We are well recovered... He speaks of misunderstanding, says that the government has lacked pedagogy... But we understood very well what he wants to do: he wants to give two more years to those who deserve their pensions, such as essential workers, instead of getting the money where it is needed."
"Let's block the country"
After eight days of mobilization without significant excesses, the atmosphere within the procession is much more tense Thursday, some do not hesitate to chant "it's going to fart!".
Like the violence that punctuated the spontaneous demonstrations organized in several cities of France in recent days, several incidents took place at the beginning of the procession. Throughout the demonstration, people dressed in black and wearing masks and glasses, including smashing windows and defacing street furniture. They also threw numerous paving stones and bottles at the police, who used tear gas on numerous occasions. Several garbage cans and scooters were also set on fire.
>> In the midst of social conflict, French policing singled out
Violence that Pascal, 54, condemns but understands. "By dint of despising us, Emmanuel Macron radicalizes the movement," he denounced, decked out in a yellow vest and a satirical sign representing the comic book character of Asterix giving a slap to Macron. "I denounce this violence. But I agree on one point: the street must rise up. Now is the time. Let's block the country if necessary, but this law must not pass!"
Pascal, 54, calls for "blocking the country" against the pension reform. © Cyrielle Cabot, France 24
Alix, Marie and Alma, meanwhile, participated in the spontaneous Parisian demonstrations every night of the week. And if the three students in their twenties admit to worrying about the excesses, it does not hinder their determination. "All this violence is scary. But we are even more afraid for our democracy. We must put an end to this increasingly authoritarian government."
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