Paris police ban protest rallies in city hotspots – POLITICO

Paris police banned gatherings in two of the hotspots of protests against French President Emmanuel Macron’s pension reforms on Saturday, as thousands of people continued to demonstrate across the country against the measures.

Over the past two evenings, people have gathered in the streets to protest against the government’s use of Article 49.3 of the French Constitution to push through the controversial pension reform bill that will raise the age of retirement from age 62 to 64. More than 300 people were arrested across the country, including 258 on Place de la Concorde in Paris, opposite the French parliament.

“Due to serious risks of disturbances to public order and security (…) any gathering on (…) Place de la Concorde and its surroundings as well as in the area of ​​Avenue des Champs- Elysees is prohibited,” police said, according to a statement. AFP report. “People who attempt to gather there will be systematically expelled by the police” and may be fined, the report adds.

This decision did not prevent the demonstrators from taking to the streets and looking elsewhere to wave their banners and union flags. In the early afternoon of Saturday, opponents of pension reform between the shopping district of Les Halles in the center of Paris.

Other protests are taking place across the country, while in Paris a large rally is set to start at 6 p.m. in Place d’Italie.