[matilda] FW: Newsblast: Historic massive student and youth protests/unrest in France!

[From Jason]

Massive student and youth protests/unrest in France

Not sure if you know but there is now massive student unrest in France
on a scale not seen since 1996 and possibly 1968! With a wave of
occupations, student strikes and demonstrations across France. They
are protesting against a labour law, (The CPE) railroaded into law
with no debate which will allow companies to fire workers under 26
within the first two years of employment with little notice or
severance. Unions and student organisations, including UNEF, the
country's largest, say the law encourages the replacement of staff and
is 'very hard on the young'. Many of the clashes have centered around
the Sorbonne: the elite University on Paris's Left Bank that was the
fulcrum of the 1968 student uprising. The French Govt is so worried of
another '1968' that some Ministers have returned early from trips
abroad. There have been demos, protests and sometimes violent scenes
at universities and colleges across the country, with the biggest
demonstration and rally expected on Saturday 18th March where over one
million students, young people, trade unionists, workers and
professionals are to march against the law.

The events so far..

'Together we are recreating our university'.

The protests began with a march last Tuesday which the organizers say
reached up to one million. Over the weekend of 11/12th march, the
Sorbonne was occupied for the first time since 1968, but was later
violently evicted by over 1000 riot police, other colleges were taken
over including the prestigious College De France. The University of
Nanterre, one of the largest in Paris, was occupied by 250 students
and even a number of professors. On Tuesday, a day of action saw
nearly 10,000 students in Lille march and attempt to gain access to
the train station, but were driven back by riot police. Many have
described the University occupations as 'inspiring' and the atmosphere
'electric' as impromptu lectures, debates and teach-ins are held by
students and the numerous sympathetic lecturers. There have been
numerous cultural and social events with the public invited to
participate. Attempts have been made to link up with other workers,
such as University manual workers and to raise other current
issues,such as the plight of the urban poor in the Banliues. One
elated female student at Paris III-Censier university, an national
organising centre for the protests and where it is claimed the media
have imposed a total media black-out exclaimed 'Together we are
recreating our university'.

Thursday march 16th Day Of Action

'The Govt is holding a knife to our throat, we must resist'

It was Thursday's 'Day Of Action' called for by the protesters that
saw much more concerted activity: in Nice, 1000 school students
blocked a motorway as morning demonstrations took place across France.
In Marseille, many thousands of school students marched accompanied by
many of their teachers. Dozens of schools across France were closed,
blocked or disturbed and thousands of high-school pupils from the
suburbs joined the main demonstration in Paris. In largely peaceful
demonstrations, an estimated 250,000 students and young people
participated in around 200 colourful and vibrant and noisy
demonstrations around the country. On the Paris demo, one of the
protesters: Jacques Heilmann, an english student commented:
''Unemployment in France is huge, and we feel let down, and we feel
there is nothing to hold on to'' he added ''We simply don't know where
we are going''. Another made the cutting point that ''it is not like
1968, those students found jobs''! However another young female
student was more combatative: ''the Govt is holding a knife to our
throat, we must resist''. Some protesters were seen to be wearing
black garbage bags to symbolize their charge that the government
'treats young people as disposable workers.'

Other large demonstrations also took place in Grenoble, Limoges and Le
Havre. However, there were numerous confrontations: in Rennes, police
dispersed protesters who attacked cars and set garbage bins ablaze.
Other demonstrators temporarily disrupted rail traffic in the
southwestern city of Bordeaux and at a Paris station. The evening saw
yet more confrontation as again the Left bank and the Sorbonne became
the focus of angry protests as police fired rubber pellets and tear
gas at youths who pelted them with stones and set cars on fire.
Fifty-one police and riot officers were injured, and a total of 272
people were detained nationwide. There have also been reports of
instances of gangs of far right youths clashing with protesters,
particularly in central Paris. The future The protest continues with
the students union UNEF claiming 64 universities out of 84
universities blocked,while a count carried out by the Agency France
Presses puts the figure at 58. The Prime MInister M. de Villepin went
on national television to defend his reform, but has offered to
discuss its implementation in the hopes of mollifying the students.
The protesters meanwhile, are now getting ready for the main Saturday
protest.

Resources

regularly updated blog http://libcom.org/blog/

http://paris.indymedia.org/

http://www.guardian.co.uk/france/0,,681877,00.html

Reports

http://news.google.co.uk/news?hl=en&q=France+job+law

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4819052.stm