French Students Resume Protests; Nearly 200 Schools Closed

French students launched a new wave of nationwide rallies to protest insufficient education funding and studying conditions.

According to Ambassador Arjan, quoted by Anatoly, French students held a new round of nationwide protests on Tuesday, and about 200 schools were closed across the country.

According to Le Parisien, marches began in Lyon and Nantes, and students in Paris, Rennes and Strasbourg also blocked the entrance to some schools. This is the fifth round of student protests in France.

Edouard Geoffrey, the French Minister of Education, announced in an interview with France Inter Radio that about 200 educational centers have been closed; According to him, the figure is less than last week. He also said that the consultation system with high school students has received 86,000 contributions and nearly a thousand contract teachers are being recruited to strengthen the capacity of replacing teachers.

In Paris, students, parents and teachers rallied near Helen Boucher high school, and protesters also blocked part of the entrance to Torgau and Montagne high schools. The University of Paris-Pantheon-Assas also held classes virtually after causing disruption in the university campuses. A police source reported a clash between two groups near this university; The students also announced that one of their classmates was injured.

Teachers' unions including "FSU-SNYP" and "SNES-FSU" asked their members to join the protests. Increasing the public education budget, improving working conditions and increasing wages are common demands of teachers and students. Protesters also demand changes in educational policies and university admission system "Parkoursop".

Greta Thunberg, the Swedish environmental activist, also attended the rally in front of the "Poll Alvar" high school in Saint-Denis, north of Paris. About 20 lawyers also formed a human chain around the students to support them.

In an interview with BFMTV, Thunberg described the police's treatment of the protesting youth as "extremely violent" and said the students were protesting to achieve their minimum demands. He added that the police should protect the youth.

French President Emmanuel Macron asked protesters to keep calm and respect people and public property.

According to "Le Parisin" newspaper, since the beginning of this movement, more than 6,800 people, the overwhelming majority of whom were under the legal age, have been arrested. Also, the General Inspectorate of the French Police has opened 24 cases on suspected cases of police brutality.