France and Germany Brace for Large Protests as France Deploys 70,000 Officers
France expects demonstrations against the cost of living and problems in education for a third weekend in a row on Saturday, 31 October, while youth-led protests are planned in more than 30 German cities. French authorities have mobilised about 70,000 police officers and gendarmes.
Large demonstrations against the cost of living and problems in the education system are expected in France on Saturday, 31 October, for the third weekend in a row. Fearing unrest, French authorities have mobilised roughly 70,000 police officers and gendarmes. At the same time, youth-organised demonstrations are planned in more than 30 German cities, according to Euronews and The Guardian.
The situation in France
Students, trade union representatives and supporters of the so-called "yellow vests" movement plan to take part. The wave of protests began in mid-September, when pupils in Paris suburbs voiced dissatisfaction with conditions in schools. It later grew into a broader movement against the cost of living, rising fuel prices and insufficient funding for public services. Last week the government announced several measures to improve education, but trade unions consider them inadequate.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez has warned of a very high risk of public order disturbances, particularly because the demonstrations coincide with Halloween celebrations. Authorities have restricted protests in some city centres, and in Paris assembly restrictions will apply overnight in designated areas. Unions have criticised the measures as a disproportionate limit on freedom of assembly.
The tighter security follows the demonstrations of 17 October, which were accompanied in several French cities by violent clashes, looting of shops and property damage. On 24 October, when the Interior Ministry estimated about 410,000 people took part, police largely managed to prevent such widespread disorder. This week, calls for unauthorised evening protests, including violent action, have also spread on social media.
Demonstrations in Germany
In Germany, the youth movement "Gen Z regelt" has called on people to demonstrate in more than 30 cities, demanding greater investment in education, housing affordability and climate protection, and opposing a possible reintroduction of compulsory military service. According to the organisers, more than 160,000 people had signed up by Friday.
About 10,000 demonstrators, mainly pupils, students and their parents, are expected at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin alone. Around 1,500 additional police officers have been mobilised in the city, although police leadership says it has no specific information about planned violent attacks or organised looting. Demonstrations are also planned in Cologne, Munich, Frankfurt and Hamburg.
The organisers stress that their movement supports only peaceful protest and condemns any violence. Some politicians nevertheless fear that the unrest seen in France could be repeated in Germany. Representatives of the opposition Green Party have warned that branding participants in advance as violent radicals could only deepen divisions in society.
