Several thousand people are protesting on Saturday, April 1, in Verre, the electoral district of current French Prime Minister Elisabeth Bourne, to condemn the government’s “contempt” for opponents of the pension reform, AFP and Liberation reported.

France is protesting against the pension reform. Violent clashes between the police and demonstratorsPhoto: Aurelien Morissard / AP / Profimedia

Despite rain and wind, at least 6,000 people, according to trade unions, and 3,100 according to the prefecture, marched peacefully this Saturday in Vire (Calvados) to denounce the pension reform. The trade unions chose this town for the regional assembly because Elizabeth Bourne was elected as an MP in the last legislative election in June 2022.

Clashes with police, clashes and other damage marked protests against pension reform in several cities on Tuesday, including Paris, where the march was calmer than previous demonstrations, AFP journalists found.

In the midst of the pension crisis, French Prime Minister Elizabeth Bourne has invited unions to negotiations next week, “on Monday or Tuesday,” CFDT (French Democratic Confederation of Labor) general secretary Laurent Berget said.

A new day of strikes and general demonstrations is planned for April 6, trade unions report.

French President Emmanuel Macron said in mid-March that a hotly contested pension reform must be implemented “before the end of the year”, comparing protests in France to the siege of the US Capitol after Donald Trump lost the election.