Paris:

French President Emmanuel Macron has called for “calm and order” after one of the most violent days of unrest in the recent past in the European nation, after largely peaceful anti-government protests turned into rioting and looting, leaving two people dead. In a national address from the Elysee Palace, Macron said “nothing justifies” the “unbridled violence” as police arrested around 2,400 people in cities across the country.

Echoing other government officials in blaming much of the violence on far-left activists, Macron said the law would be brought to bear on those who had participated in rioting or damaged property. 

“Those who destroyed must pay. Those who looted will have to pay for the damage, and those who sought to bring down the Republic will be held accountable,” he said in a televised address to the nation.

The president also denounced “unrestrained violence” by “insurrectionist elements from radical far-left groups, joined by numerous criminals.”

“Watching these images, we have all asked ourselves, how could French people do this to France?” he said in a televised address.

Glimpses of Protest

Videos shared on social media from different parts of the country showed broken glass, burnt bicycles and debris on streets following the day’s unrest. 

In the city of Limoges, in central France, protesters set the 19th-century City Hall on fire, causing its roof to collapse and nearly destroying the building.

In Paris, hundreds of protesters gathered at the Place de la Republique amid a heavy police presence. Officers used tear gas as tensions flared sporadically in the neighbourhood, with small groups of people trying to set bicycles and trash bins on fire.

In Lyon, the city’s tourist office was set ablaze, leaving the building’s facade scorched. Nearby shops were also vandalised and looted, while residents photographed the destruction.

In Marseille, some protesters briefly forced their way into City Hall’s lobby, and a group of people wearing hoods and masks damaged a police station. 

The mayors of Paris, Marseille and Lyon, the three largest cities, requested a meeting with the prime minister in the coming days “given the extent of the damage and the seriousness of the situation.”

The Crackdown

In his address, Macron said local authorities would be able to ban — “if necessary” — certain rallies in the coming days. But he stopped short of announcing drastic measures, such as a state of emergency or curfew.

“Tonight, we all feel anger and shame,” Macron said. “Looking at these images, we all asked ourselves: what is going through their minds? How can French people do this to France?” 

Macron insisted there must be a distinction between protesters with “legitimate demands” and “those who destroyed, smashed, and looted”.

He vowed the authorities would be “uncompromising” towards the “agitators from ultra-left fringe groups, joined by numerous delinquents” who “unleashed unbridled violence in our cities.”

The Opposition

The unrest came just months before a presidential election where centrist Macron cannot stand again and Marine Le Pen, the far-right presidential candidate for the National Rally party, is riding high in the polls.

Le Pen said the troubles showed that Macron’s administration was “running on fumes, exhausted and disoriented”.

Jean-Luc Melenchon, head of the hard-left France Unbowed party, also running for president, warned that the country could be heading toward “events that will eventually become uncontrollable”.

Meanwhile, in eastern France, the Mulhouse prosecutor’s office said an investigation has been opened after a 17-year-old girl was injured during the protests and lost an eye. On Saturday, another investigation was opened after a young protester lost a hand in Saint-Etienne.

The injuries come as police have drawn sharp scrutiny over their use of grenades and other riot-control weapons during recent demonstrations.
 




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