Macron’s favourite restaurant set on fire, participation dwindles in French pension protests

French riot police take position during clashes with protesters at a demonstration as part of the eleventh day of nationwide strikes and protests against French government's pension reform, in Paris, France, April 6, 2023. © Sarah Meyssonnier, Reuters

Protesters in Paris briefly set fire to President Emmanuel Macron’s favourite restaurant Thursday as hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets for an 11th day of demonstrations against the president’s deeply unpopular pension reform. Violence also flared in others French cities, including Rennes and Nantes, but overall protest participation dwindled. Read our live blog below to follow the day’s events as they unfolded.

Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets for the 11th day of protests against French pension reforms on Thursday. 

• The interior ministry said 570,000 people demonstrated across France, while the unions estimated the number at around 2 million.
• Clashes between protesters and police were reported in Paris and other cities around France, including Nantes, Nancy and Rennes.
• The government said111 people were detained and 154 police officers injured.
• Unions called for a 12^th day of protests on April 13.
• The strikes come amid a deadlock in discussions between unions and the government. On Wednesday, union representatives met with French Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne for discussions that unions branded "a failure".
• President Emmanuel Macron is on a state visit in China until Saturday. His office rejected responsibility for the failed talks and laid blame on the unions, notably the moderate CFDT, who it said “did not want to compromise” with the government.
• Public anger was further ignited after Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne used Article 49.3 – known as the "nuclear option" – to push pension reform through parliament without a vote on March 16, sparking widespread anger. Days later, the government narrowly survived two no-confidence votes. 
• French President Emmanuel Macron insists the proposed changes, which include raising the retirement age from 62 to 64, are needed to reform a moribund system. But some of the government’s own experts have said the pension system is in relatively good shape and would likely return to a balanced budget even without reforms. 

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