Undeclared demonstrations, blockages of oil depots, waste collection at a standstill, roadblocks, scuffles... after the use of 49.3 by the government in the National Assembly, Thursday, March 16, in order to have the pension reform adopted, then the rejection of the two motions of censure brought against him on Monday, social protest is growing everywhere in France.
The regional daily press relays the anger of the demonstrators and their various actions, on the eve of the ninth day of mobilization scheduled for Thursday.
In Toulouse in particular, the announcement of 49.3 "tipped the protest in the Pink City into a new dimension", notes La Dépêche du Midi, in an article on Tuesday. Thus, since Thursday, "gatherings have been organized in all directions by collectives". "The unions are also continuing and intensifying the protest, in a less radical form", with "strike pickets" or even the "blocking of companies". Enough to say on a daily basis that, from now on, "the challenge is being fought on two fronts".
In Lyon, the demonstrators "say they are even more determined after this point of no return", wrote Le Progrès on Tuesday evening, while "the actions [multiplied] while waiting for Thursday", just like in Annecy (Haute-Savoie), where "despite the rejection of the two motions of censure, the mobilization is still as strong in the street", notes Le Dauphiné released on Monday.
Smaller rallies continue to take place daily also in smaller cities, such as Agen, Rodez, or Tarascon-sur-Ariège (Ariège), where 250 demonstrators mobilized in front of the prefecture on Monday "for the first time decorating its toilet paper racks, according to La Dépêche, to the sound of the slogan "We don't let go, we don't let go, we don't let go".
In addition, several regional press dailies also report scuffles between the police and opponents, partly during undeclared gatherings, such as in Clermont-Ferrand, where clashes with "small groups of demonstrators" have taken place. place Monday evening and Tuesday evening, repeatedly, relates La Montagne, or even in Nancy, where L'Est Républicain testifies to the dispersal techniques used by the police to put an end to the clashes of Monday and Tuesday.
In Rennes, Le Télégramme testifies to the mobilization "punctuated by clashes" of four hundred fishermen on Wednesday, with "a tractor launched, without a driver, on the police". In Brest, the daily evokes a "riot scene" on Tuesday, still "painful" for local residents, while Ouest-France speaks of "more intense clashes than usual", Tuesday evening in Nantes.
While on the same day, in northern France, the Lille rally "peaceful at first", but "under enormous police pressure", ended in a dispersal which "was done in the greatest confusion, generating urban degradation and arrests", according to La Voix du Nord.
In another style of mobilizations, sometimes led by only a handful of demonstrators, filtering roadblocks are multiplying on French territory, such as in Carhaix (Finistère), where a blocking action was organized on Tuesday at a "roundabout in facing the entrance" of a factory, by "a dozen demonstrators", in order to "raise awareness of the withdrawal of the pension reform". "A spontaneous gathering that could happen again in the days to come," notes Ouest-France.
Same case in Nîmes, where the western exit of the city was blocked for an hour on Wednesday morning, according to Midi libre, or "at the entrance to Vichy", in Allier, where a dozen demonstrators blocked temporarily, on Tuesday, a roundabout in a commercial area, reports La Montagne. In Guéret, access to the postal center was blocked at the same time by around twenty demonstrators, says the regional daily.
In addition, according to La Dépêche, a "free toll" operation was carried out on Tuesday morning by the inter-union of the Hautes-Pyrénées, in the west of Tarbes, where a hundred activists "even more reassembled than ever" distributed leaflets at the toll, "to call for the demonstration this Thursday".
On Wednesday in Saint-Nazaire, the "dead port" operation continued in the port area, with "actions [which] began at 4 a.m. on various roundabouts" and the blocking of the port in both directions maintained, according to West France.
In addition to Nice, on Wednesday, a "surprise" blocking of the tracks of certain stations also took place in smaller towns, such as Moulins, where a hundred demonstrators invaded the voices of the station, late Tuesday afternoon, reports La Mountain. On Monday, barricades were also erected at Brioude station (Haute-Loire), "preventing access to the SNCF station car park with clear messages: 'No to pension reform', 'Macron resignation'", according to the regional daily.
Very mobilized since the start of the social conflict, the energy and oil sectors have also reinforced their mobilization in recent days. With new targeted power cuts, such as in Aurillac, where an area of activity "which includes factories, car dealerships, large brands, hotels and various small traders, was plunged into darkness in the early hours of the day", Wednesday at morning, says La Montagne.
In Annecy, the Enedis site in Meythet has been blocked since Monday. "Hanging from a nacelle, a mannequin dressed in Enedis work overalls and a white helmet overlooks the barrage of the manager's employees", narrates Le Dauphiné released.
While several refineries are blocked and the shortage of fuel threatens certain regions, in Aubenas (Ardèche), on Tuesday morning, "fifty demonstrators" CGT blocked access to a Total service station located on the N 102, according to Le Dauphiné released, while in the evening, one of the three Breton oil depots, that of Vern-sur-Seiche (Ille-et-Vilaine), near Rennes, was still blocked, according to Ouest-France .
"The requisition of striking employees overnight from Monday to Tuesday had the effect of a detonator", Wednesday in front of the Fos-Sur-Mer oil depot (Bouches-du-Rhône), according to Nice-Matin, where the mobilization "turned into a confrontation" between strikers and the police. "The CGT activists, in particular in the Bouches-du-Rhône, already 'heated' by the government's use of Article 49.3 of the Constitution to validate the pension reform", converged at the entrance to the site as soon as the announcement, before the end of the morning, that the demonstration would turn "into a real siege, with violent exchanges between demonstrators and police forces; throwing stones for some, and tear gas grenades for the latter".
In addition to Paris and Le Havre, the waste treatment centers of several French municipalities have also been immobilized. The liberated Dauphiné recounts in particular the mobilization of the guards of the four waste reception centers in Annemasse (Haute-Savoie), "at the end". The latter will “close [their site] again this Thursday, March 23 due to a strike action”.
The Rouen waste treatment center has been blocked for several days and will remain so at least "until Saturday", reports Ouest-France.
In Marseille, it is also "the garbage collectors' turn" to enter the protest movement, says La Provence, Tuesday: "The mobilization was in its infancy. It is now well and truly launched. »
