The anger does not diminish. Demonstrators against the pension reform were significantly more numerous Thursday in many cities of France for the ninth day of mobilization, according to figures from unions and those of the authorities. The CGT thus declared to have counted 3.5 million demonstrators throughout the territory when the Ministry of the Interior counted 1.09 million.
First in Paris. Some 800,000 people demonstrated on Thursday, the CGT announced to AFP, while the figure from the authorities was not immediately available. This is the highest figure put forward by the union since the start of the movement, the previous record in the capital dating back to March 7, with 700,000 demonstrators, according to the CGT (81,000, according to the prefecture). The Police meanwhile counted 119,000 demonstrators in the Parisian procession.
A week after a lackluster eighth round, the processions are once again full. In Rouen, the prefecture counted 14,800 demonstrators, a record since the start of the social movement, while the CGT claimed 23,000.
Participation also up sharply in Lyon (22,000 to 55,000), Brest (20,000 to 40,000) or Montpellier (18,000 to 40,000), where the mobilization however remained below the peaks recorded during the previous days, especially January 31 and March 7.
The revival compared to the previous day of mobilization was also observed in medium-sized cities such as Agen (4,000 to 6,000), Laval (5,200 to 9,600) or Valenciennes (3,100 according to the police). While the estimates most often varied by a factor of two, some cities stood out with more pronounced differences, notably Saint-Étienne (6,200 to 35,000), Nice (5,200 to 40,000) and, as usual, Marseille where the prefecture counted 16,000 demonstrators, seventeen times less than the 280,000 put forward by the CGT.
This day marked by more strikers, multiple blockages and disruptions in sectors ranging from fuel to transport or education: the ninth day of mobilization against the pension reform on Thursday, the first since its adoption via 49.3, found many vigor.
Increase in the number of strikers
Mobilization grew among civil servants: 15.5% of state civil servants declared themselves on strike, against just under 3% on March 15; 6.5% in the territorial public service, i.e. three times more than on March 15; and 8.1% in the hospital public service (4.5% previously), according to the ministry.
In energy, Engie recorded 27.2% of strikers at midday (19.2% on March 15).
At the SNCF, the provisional rate of strikers reached 25% Thursday noon (15% on March 15 and 46% on January 19).
Fuel shortages
At the TotalEnergies refinery in Normandy, the largest in France, the strikers refused to replace the team in place, effectively rejecting any requisitions envisaged by the government.
The requisition of striking employees at the Fos-sur-Mer oil depot, near Marseille, was extended on Wednesday for 48 hours.
The shortage of petrol and diesel at service stations is increasing: according to AFP, 15% of French stations are short of one or the other Thursday, and 7.65% of stations are dry.
Blocked Ports
In Boulogne-sur-Mer, demonstrators erected roadblocks at the entrance to the port and the industrial zone of Resurgat, with the presence of students and the visit of LFI deputy François Ruffin. In Caen, the port is also blocked.
In Calais, delays were affecting cross-Channel traffic.
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Slow public transport
In Paris, several hundred demonstrators invaded the Gare de Lyon tracks, as in Brest or Narbonne. Half of the TGVs and a third of the TERs were in circulation. In Paris, metro traffic is “very severely disrupted”, as is the bus network in Rennes. In Saint-Brieuc and Évreux, traffic is almost paralyzed. In Toulouse, filter dams are organized, according to the CGT, at the Tisséo bus depots but without blocking. In Nice, around half of the bus lines are at a standstill, as are the three tram lines. In Marseille, 16 out of 80 bus lines are at a standstill.
Routes
In Toulouse on the ring road as in Lille on access to the ring road, traffic was severely disrupted by demonstrators. At Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport, a filter barrier lifted in the morning by the police blocked access to terminal 1. In Meuse, filter barriers are organized in Bar-le-Duc and Verdun.
Air Transport
Civil Aviation has asked companies to cancel 30% of their flights at Paris-Orly and 20% at Marseille Provence, Toulouse-Blagnac and Lyon-Saint-Exupéry due to the air traffic controllers’ strike. Montpellier and Pau airports were briefly closed Thursday morning due to the lack of air traffic control. The supply of aviation kerosene to Île-de-France and its airports is becoming “critical” according to the government.
Education
The Ministry of Education reported Thursday noon of “77 incidents in high schools in France” including 27 blockages and 37 filter blockages.
In front of the prestigious Parisian Louis-le-Grand, 150 to 200 people gathered, with signs “Macron resignation” or “Retirement before arthritis”.
According to the Alternative student union Thursday morning, 80 universities and schools are mobilized: 26 universities (Paris, Clermont, Poitiers, Tours, Strasbourg, Grenoble, Chambéry, Versailles, etc.) are blocked; 33 schools of arts, decorative arts, occupied universities; 22 schools of architecture and universities practice standard courses (no obligation to attend).
Waste
On the 18th day of the garbage collectors’ strike in Paris, the three incineration plants serving the capital are blocked, the metropolitan union which manages them, Syctom, told AFP.
In Brest, the waste incineration plant remains blocked, for the fourth consecutive day, by around fifty people, according to FO.
Public buildings
In Paris, the town hall of the 5th arrondissement opened its doors without electricity, the CGT claiming a targeted cut aimed at the mayor Horizon Florence Berthoud, favorable to the reform.
The Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe or even the Palace of Versailles are closed due to the strike movement.