Violent protests have once again rocked France, as the Gilets Juanes (Yellow Vest) demonstrators took to the streets in response to rising fuel taxes, cost of living and other issues.
French president Emmanuel Macron has called for calm and scheduled crisis meetings with trade union leaders and representatives of the Yellow Vest movement, in an effort to deter further outbreaks of violence.
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More than 135,000 protestors battled close to 90,000 police through the protests, leading to around 1,200 arrests as the violence spilled into its fourth weekend.
The Independent says at least “135 are thought to be injured, including 17 policemen”, after clashes broke out on Saturday.
Macron will address France in a televised speech, scheduled for 8pm local time – his first national televised address since 27 November, in which he firmly said he would not be “bounced into changing policy by ‘thugs’”, France24 notes.
French Labour Minister Muriel Penicaud has announced that Macron will be revealing “concrete and immediate measures” in a bid to stem the violence, but has already flagged there will be no increase in the minimum wage.
“Increasing the minimum wage would destroy jobs. Many small business cannot afford it and risk going bankrupt,” she said.
Meanwhile, protestors have indicated that they are prepared to continue with demonstrations “until Easter, if necessary”, in a bid to convince the government that its policies are not acceptable to the French people.
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