PARIS (The Thursday Times) — Police fired tear gas in Paris and Lyon and water cannon in Cologne on Saturday as hundreds of thousands of mostly young people marched across France and Germany over the cost of living, run-down schools and cuts, the latest wave of a Gen Z protest movement spreading across Europe.
French authorities put turnout on the third straight weekend of protests at 320,000, including 70,000 in Paris, while youth groups and student unions said nearly half a million took part. Marches began peacefully but turned violent as crowds gathered near the end of the main Paris route, with bins and street furniture set alight. Masked groups on the outskirts of the capital prised up paving stones and threw them at police. The interior ministry said at least 290 people had been arrested nationwide.
About 70,000 police and gendarmes were deployed, and Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez had warned of a “very high risk” of disorder after dark on Halloween. The main Paris march was moved to the city’s eastern edge after a last-minute court battle, and unaccompanied minors faced a 9pm curfew around the Champs-Élysées. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has met student unions this week and is considering measures to ease living costs.
The movement began last month with high school students protesting against crumbling buildings, teacher shortages and a university admissions system seen as unfair to poorer students, before unions joined. Protests on October 17 drew more than 500,000 people and turned into some of France’s worst rioting in years.
‘GenZ has got this’
In Germany, demonstrators turned out in Berlin, Frankfurt, Cologne and dozens of other cities for marches organised by the group “GenZ regelt!” (GenZ has got this), with organisers saying 170,000 had registered for protests in more than 30 cities. In Cologne, police fired a water cannon to disperse a crowd after saying protesters had targeted officers with fireworks. Barricades were set alight in Hamburg, and protesters threw bottles and eggs in Berlin.
Marchers carried signs reading “Time for resistance” and “Merz must go”, aimed at Chancellor Friedrich Merz. “We’re taking to the streets for a life that everyone can afford,” said Veronika Dinter, a spokeswoman for the movement. “Hardly anyone still believes in a better future if everything just continues as it is.” The protesters also oppose sharply increased military spending and a new voluntary service scheme they fear is a step towards restoring conscription.
In Spain, police in Barcelona were on their highest alert after rioting on October 24 led to about 130 arrests, most of them minors.
