Fewer French people took to the streets for the seventh day of protests against the contentious pension reform of President Emmanuel Macron, even as a growing majority opposes the overhaul.
(Bloomberg) — Fewer French people took to the streets for the seventh day of protests against the contentious pension reform of President Emmanuel Macron, even as a growing majority opposes the overhaul.
A total of 368,000 people took part in marches across the country Saturday, according to the Interior Ministry. That’s a sharp drop from the 1.28 million people seen last Tuesday.
In a letter Friday, Macron told the country’s unions who demanded an in-person meeting that it was necessary to work longer to preserve the pension system, sticking to his plan to raise the retirement age to 64 from 62. A survey by pollster Elabe for BFMTV Saturday shows that 70% of the French are against the overhaul, up 3 points from a week earlier.
Out of 1,003 adults interviewed on March 9-10 via the Internet, 54% of respondents say they support the strikes and the blocking of some sectors to oppose the reform.
The unions, which denounced in a statement Macron’s “disdain” after the president refused to meet with them, also called for him to consult the French citizens as soon as possible.
“Since the president of the Republic is so confident, then he can just consult the people, and we’ll see the people’s answer,” CGT leader Philippe Martinez said ahead of the march in Paris Saturday.
The French Senate, which is currently reviewing the bill, will only proceed to one vote on the entire proposal, after the government used an article of the French constitution to speed up debates on Friday. The move, which means the amendments submitted by opposition parties will not be voted on, sparked an outrage among lawmakers.
New protests are expected to take place on March 15.
(Updates with details throughout.)
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