Thousands on Saturday rallied in France, Spain and Berlin to mark May Day in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic as police scuffled with protesters in Paris and fired tear gas.
A police source said that far-left “black bloc” protesters had repeatedly tried to block the trade union-led march in the French capital, where 46 people were detained.
Some protesters smashed the windows of bank branches, set fire to garbage bins and threw projectiles at police, who responded with volleys of tear gas and stingball grenades.
Photo: EPA-EFE
About 5,000 police were deployed in Paris, a police source said.
The CGT union said that nearly 300 May Day protests were planned around the country.
It later claimed a total national turnout of 170,000, with 25,000 rallying in the French capital.
The French Ministry of the Interior put the national figure at 106,000 and the Paris turnout at 17,000.
The crowds held placards with different demands, ranging from the end of the nighttime curfew in place as part of COVID-19 restrictions, to a halt to unemployment reforms due to come into force in July.
“We have many reasons to come and rally — the health and social situations and the general impoverishment of society,” said Ivan Gineste, 50, who works at a high school in the southeastern city of Lyon.
Members of the “yellow vest” anti-elite movement, which rocked the country two years ago before largely fizzling out, could also be spotted at protests up and down the country.
“There are so many motivations for a revolt that are building up — the management of COVID, the so-called reforms that are going to take away people’s ability to live, job-seekers who are going to lose their benefits,” said a pensioner who gave her name as Patricia.
“We absolutely need to express ourselves,” the 66-year-old said.
In Berlin, police made several arrests and used tear gas after stones and bottles were thrown as some 5,000 people rallied following a call by left and far-left groups.
Organizers said that about 20,00 people gathered to march to the nearby traditionally radical leftist Kreuzberg district.
Local media reported the situation calmed down at about 8pm GMT after the capital’s police wrote on Twitter that they were ready to deploy water cannons to put out burning wooden pallets to ensure the flames did not reach parked vehicles.
About 5,600 police were deployed in the city where more than 20 rallies were scheduled to be held over issues ranging from rising rents to Germany’s immigration policy and opposition to COVID-19 curbs.
Thousands also rallied in more than 70 cities across Spain in the first May Day demonstrations since the pandemic began.
Wearing masks and observing social distancing, demonstrators marched through the streets waving banners, although in many places, numbers were capped to ensure disease prevention measures were respected.
The main demonstration in Madrid, which was limited to 1,000 people, began at midday under the slogan “Now it’s time to deliver,” with the participants marching from the town hall to the city’s Puerta del Sol square.
In Turkey, police detained more than 200 people who were trying to hold a May Day rally in Istanbul in defiance of a ban related to the pandemic.
They were caught as they tried to walk to Taksim Square, a traditional area of protest, Agence France-Presse correspondents said, and in other areas nearby, including the popular Istiklal Avenue.
The Istanbul Governor’s Office later said 212 people were detained.
Police pushed a crowd back forcefully using their shields, while other officers dragged protesters away, a correspondent said.
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