France Braces for New Protests as Authorities Fear Halloween Violence
France expects another nationwide wave of protests on Saturday, which coincides with Halloween. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez warned of a very high risk to public order and is deploying 70,000 police officers.
Thousands of demonstrators are expected to take to the streets across France on Saturday, Oct. 31, in what has become a weekly show of national discontent. The protests began as student walkouts and have grown into an antigovernment movement. This week's worries are heightened by Halloween falling on the same day, with calls circulating on social media to turn out in masks and costumes.
France's interior minister, Laurent Nuñez, warned on Thursday of a "day with a very high risk to public order." He promised 70,000 police officers, the same number as on Oct. 24. That heavy deployment helped contain arson and looting then, although clashes occurred in the evening as police dispersed crowds. In Paris, the authorities again moved the march route to the city's eastern edge, and organizers' legal challenges have failed.
The role of social media
Mr. Nuñez pointed to numerous calls, from the far left and some radicalized "yellow vest" websites, to gather at 8 p.m. in many cities. Some messages urged "revolution" and "insurrection." Such gatherings will be banned, and attempts to hold them will lead to arrests. He also noted that concealing one's face during a demonstration that disrupts public order is a criminal offense.
President Emmanuel Macron denied speculation that the government had considered temporarily suspending several popular platforms. In a YouTube interview, he said platforms would have to remove illegal content. Earlier, a left-leaning news site reported that Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu had written to telecom operators asking them to be ready to block Snapchat, TikTok and Instagram. The prime minister's office declined to comment on whether the letter was authentic.
How the movement grew
The protests began in September at high schools in Créteil, a Paris suburb, where students objected to a lack of resources and heavy workloads. They spread nationwide, joined by university students, unions and public workers. Protesters cite the cost of living, high fuel prices and school conditions. On Oct. 17, more than half a million people marched, according to an official estimate. Police have arrested thousands.
The Education Ministry has agreed to cap some class sizes, offer low-interest loans to rebuild school buildings and phase out an unpopular online college admissions platform. Students vowed to keep protesting, and they return to school on Monday after a two-week break.
