A new round of national demonstrations erupted in France on October 24th, with violent clashes between protesters and police still occurring in several cities. In the capital Paris, police released data showing that about 110,000 people took to the streets. Several protesters were interviewed by Phoenix Satellite TV reporters, showing that their demands involved multiple aspects such as civilian life, education, and politics. Some demanded that the government respond effectively to the dissatisfaction of the people, while others directly demanded that French President Macron step down.
Paris demonstrators: “Let him [Macron] go to hell! We don‘t want to wait until election day. So the timing of the presidential election is not important at all. We are the ones making history, not Macron.”
From the protests in early October, to the riots and violence that swept across many parts of France last weekend, and to today‘s new round of demonstration and protest activities, the pressure and challenges facing the French government are increasing daily. How to quickly come up with practical and effective countermeasures, respond to the dissatisfaction and demands of various social classes, and drive the situation to cool down, has become a real test problem facing the French government.