Interior ministry figures put Tuesday's marches above 250,000, with 488 arrests. Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu called the injury toll the heaviest for the school system in decades.
Demonstrations over conditions in France's high schools drew more than 250,000 people on Tuesday, the interior ministry said, in the largest day yet of a campaign that began in September. Organisers put the turnout at 450,000. Police used tear gas and water cannon against violent groups on the edges of marches in Paris, Strasbourg, Rennes and Toulouse.
Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu told lawmakers that at least 215 teenagers and 85 school staff had been injured in clashes, which he called the heaviest toll in decades for the school system. The interior ministry said 488 people were arrested on Tuesday and 48 security personnel were injured. The Guardian reported that more than 6,100 people had been arrested since mid-September, almost all of them minors, and that the justice ministry said more than 1,800 were being prosecuted.
Students, parents and teachers are demanding more investment in classrooms, buildings and staffing. The education ministry said more than 900 of about 3,700 high schools were blockaded or closed for the day. Student groups put the figure near 1,800. The government has been trying to pass a budget without a parliamentary majority since the 2024 election.
Paris police said about 300 people, most hooded or masked, confronted security forces in the capital, and that the protest was otherwise largely without major incident. Several storefronts were damaged. The Guardian said President Emmanuel Macron called ministers to the Elysee on Tuesday night.
No new school-funding law was announced with Tuesday's figures. Lecornu has said there will be no concession to violence while promising visible changes in schools.
People Sentiments Negative
- Hugo Vetzel, a recent high-school graduate in Strasbourg, told Reuters there was a gap between elites and students.
- Lecornu told lawmakers the injury figures were the heaviest toll in decades paid by the school system.