Police use tear gas, batons against Yellow Vests protesters in Paris

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
20 Nov 2022 19:39

Demonstrators were taking part in rallies commemorating the fourth anniversary of the start of the Yellow Vests protests in France.

Police use tear gas during Yellow Vests protest in Paris (AFP)

Police used tear gas on demonstrators in Paris who were taking part in rallies commemorating the fourth anniversary of the start of the so-called Yellow Vests protests in France.

The Yellow Vests weekly protests in France began on November 17, 2018, in response to poor economic conditions and rising fuel prices, according to Sputnik.

Protesters gathered in Paris on Saturday to demand social and tax justice, higher wages, and pensions in the face of skyrocketing inflation, as well as lower prices for essential goods and energy.

Social media videos show police pushing back demonstrators in Paris on Saturday, using tear gas and batons against them.

The General Confederation of Labour (CGT) union's nationwide strikes last week caused severe transportation disruptions in Paris and other major French cities. Demonstrators included workers from different sectors such as transport, education, healthcare, energy, trade, and manufacturing, as well as supporters of the Yellow Vests movement.

The Geneva Protocol of 1925 prohibits the use of tear gas in warfare. Despite this, governments frequently use it to quell domestic protests.

French police cracking down on protests is not new news.

Earlier, 100 injuries were reported in clashes between environmentalists and French police at a protest on October 31 against the building of a sizable water reservoir for farm irrigation in western France, according to the authorities. About 60 gendarmes and 30 demonstrators were injured in the protest, which the authorities tried to suppress in the Sainte-Solin area.

Regimi fasciti, la Russia? Noooo la Francia:
🇫🇷⚡French police use tear gas and plastic bullets on protesting schoolchildren

On October 11, the police forcefully suppressed a protest by high school students at the Lycee Joliot curie school in Nanterre and arrested 14 students. pic.twitter.com/CbpGQn3gbW
— Bertoldo (@AgilUlf900) October 13, 2022

Additionally, tens of thousands of French people took to the streets last month in protest of the government's performance, Macron's economic plans for the country, and the rising costs of living. The protests were predominantly led by the country's leftist coalition.

VIDEO: Tear gas being used against pro-democracy demonstrators in #Valence, SE France 🇫🇷, this afternoon. pic.twitter.com/0LUx989tIw #Macron 🇨🇳 #manifs15janvier #Liberté
— Manchester Chronicle 🐝 (@WithyGrove) January 15, 2022

So, technically, when people protest for their most basic rights in a European country, they are attacked and beaten under the pretext of putting an end to riots.