French teenagers blockaded some high schools and marched through cities on Thursday in the latest wave of nationwide protests about conditions in the country’s schools, and some of the demonstrations were marred by violent unrest.
The Interior Ministry said 71,500 people participated in the day’s demonstrations, of which 24,500 took part in the main Paris protest centred around the Bastille square.
The Paris protest was mostly peaceful, although there were occasional clashes between small groups of demonstrators and the police during the evening.
Elsewhere, arsonists attacked a Bordeaux police station, a school in Saint-Etienne was ransacked and a teacher in Toulouse was hit by a demonstrator, said the Interior Ministry.
In Marseille, police said a teacher at Victor Hugo High School was attacked during the latest protests and has filed a criminal complaint over the incident.
The protest movement, now into its third week, has exposed deep tensions in France between popular demands for investments in deteriorating public services and a cash-strapped government under pressure from bond markets to reduce its debt and deficit.
Protesters say they are demonstrating to demand more teachers and better facilities, arguing school buildings are often dilapidated, with overcrowded classrooms that are often freezing in winter and boiling in summer.
Critics say the movement has been infiltrated by violent far-left and anarchist elements.
High-school teacher Diane Di Sciullo joined students in Marseille, saying all they were asking for was a decent education in decent conditions. She denounced overcrowding, saying this year she had 37 students in her class.
“At the start of every lesson, I have to ask them to check the neighbouring classrooms for spare chairs and desks so they can actually study,” she said.
Di Sciullo, 28, was carrying a placard that read, “I’m a teacher and my students help me catch cockroaches in class.”
MINISTER PROMISES URGENT ACTION
Education ministry figures showed the number of school blockades was gradually decreasing.
Education Minister Edouard Geffray told TF1 TV that extra teachers would be drafted in to plug gaps in schools which do not have enough teachers, while heavy school timetables will also be reviewed.
It is not uncommon for French teenagers to have lessons from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., as well as large amounts of homework.
Geffray also said he was working on potential improvements to Parcoursup, the national online portal for applying to university, which has been widely criticised as confusing and stressful for applicants.
Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu pledged late on Wednesday that the government would present “concrete, quick and fully funded responses” to the protests by late October, without offering specifics.
Student protest leaders said that was not good enough and called for further marches next Tuesday. There are also calls circulating online for a day of protests on October 17.
“Our demands must be heard. Yesterday, Mr Lecornu gave us a lot of hot air,” said Ryad Rani, leader of one of the student unions.
“The mobilisation will continue, we’re not backing down on anything.”
A prominent complaint featured on banners and placards was that the police response to the wave of protests has been too heavy-handed. “Too young to be listened to, old enough to be tear-gassed” was one example.
There have been hundreds of arrests and dozens of injuries since the movement started. On Wednesday, the government suspended the use of stun grenades in the policing of the protests after one teenager’s hand was blown off.
POLITICAL RESPONSE SHOWS POLARISATION AS ELECTION LOOMS
Six months from a presidential election, the protests have highlighted stark polarisation between leading candidates to replace Emmanuel Macron, who cannot seek a third term.
Far-right frontrunner Marine Le Pen has highlighted damage to schools caused by a minority of protesters and outlined plans to slash public spending should she win.
Her hard-left opponent Jean-Luc Melenchon, who also has a chance of making the runoff, has praised the protesters as “incredible” and denounced police brutality.
According to an Elabe poll for BFM TV, 72% of French people think the students’ demands are legitimate, but 55% of them think the protests should stop.
Neighbouring Belgium has also had student protests, with demonstrations in Brussels, Ciney and Liege.
(Reporting by Paris bureau and Charlotte Van Campenhout)
