Скачать или смотреть French trade unionists block bus depot

(23 Mar 2023)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Pantin, northeastern Paris, France - 23 March 2023
1. Various of protesters gathered at bus depot
2. SOUNDBITE (French) Nadia Belhoum, 48 year-old bus driver:
“We decided to stop the exit of the bus depot. Since 20 Minutes no more buses are running in the city."
3. Various of buses blocking roads as part of the protests
4. SOUNDBITE (French) Nadia Belhoum, 48 year-old bus driver:
"The President of the Republic is supposed to govern his country and take into consideration the desires and needs of his people. He is not a king and he should listen to his people, the people say no. We say no. Despite the government's indiscriminate force (law), it is still no. It doesn't matter if it (law) is passed, voted, or implemented, it's no."
5. Police arriving at protest
6. Protesters standing in front of the police chanting and clapping, shot pans to police
7. Close of flag with police in the background
8. Police officer talking to protester UPSOUND “If you let buses pass every 15 to 20 minutes or so, we can let you gather and express yourselves as you do now. Otherwise, we have a requisition from the bus centre to intervene."
9. Various of protesters near fires
10. Buses leaving
STORYLINE:
Dozens of trade unionists blocked a Paris bus depot for two hours on Thursday morning, as a part of mass demonstrations against President Emmanuel Macron's proposed pension reforms.

Following pressure from police the unionist protesters let buses leave the depot intermittently.

French unions are holding their first mass demonstrations since President Emmanuel Macron enflamed public anger by forcing a higher retirement age through parliament without a vote.

Strikes are upending travel, and blockades are expected at ports, refineries and garbage dumps.

Violence has intensified in recent days at scattered protests against the pension reform and Macron’s leadership.

Macron is stubbornly resisting the growing discontent on the streets of France, saying Wednesday that the pension bill to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 must be implemented by the end of the year.

Bus driver Nadia Belhoum said Macron should not be able to push through the legislation.

"He is not a king and he should listen to his people, the people say no. We say no. Despite the government's indiscriminate force, it is still no. It doesn't matter if it is passed, voted, or implemented, it's no," she said.

The president’s statement on Wednesday was his first since the government forced the pension bill through parliament last week for lack of enough support.

The government then survived two no-confidence votes in the lower chamber of parliament Monday.

The bill must now pass a review by France’s Constitutional Council before becoming law.

The 45-year-old centrist president, in his second and final term, repeatedly said he was convinced that France’s retirement system needed to be modified to keep it financed.

Opponents propose other solutions including higher taxes on the wealthy or companies, which Macron says would hurt the economy.

AP Video shot by Nicolas Garriga

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