Photo: JULIEN MATTIA/MAXPPP/DPA/PICTURE ALLIANCE / Deutsche Welle
Marked by the riots in Paris, the Labor Day demonstration this May 1 brought together thousands of protesters in different cities of France in an atmosphere marked by a coalition of leftist parties each time closer to being formed for the French legislative elections in June.
In the French capital, like other years, riots were reported on the sidelines of the demonstration main, attributed to small groups of hooded radicals who smashed and set fire to urban furniture, fast food restaurants and bank branches.
The authorized march started without incidents of the Plaza de la República, with some 21.000 participants. The policemen (there were 1.500 mobilized) fired tear gas to disperse. There were also riots in the Place de la Nation.
At the moment, the amount of material damage was not communicated, but a balance was given of the number of injured (8 police officers so far) and of detainees: at least 45, including a woman who assaulted a firefighter.
Fractured social environment
The Labor Day demonstration, composed by unions and left-wing parties, it happens in the midst of a growing social fracture in France, blamed on the measures of the president, the liberal Emmanuel Macron, re-elected last Sunday for five more years.
Among the messages of the demonstration, those who were in favor of a decrease in the retirement age, which Macron wants to extend, and for an increase in the minimum wage stood out.
The protest takes place a week after Macron beat the far-right Mar ine Le Pen in the second round, partly thanks to the votes of the left, eliminated in the first with a remarkable result (21 % of the votes).
ee (efe/afp)