PARIS ¨C Thousands of protesters marched through Paris on Sunday to condemn violence in the ¡°yellow vest¡± movement that has rocked France for weeks with angry protests over President Emmanuel Macron¡¯s rule.
Some 10,000 people turned out for Sunday¡¯s counter-demonstration, a day after an 11th consecutive Saturday of ¡°yellow vest¡± demonstrations across France that brought sporadic clashes with police.
Participants, some wearing red scarves after the name of the counter-movement, displayed slogans like ¡°stop the violence¡± and ¡°hands off my Republic¡± in a peaceful afternoon procession in eastern Paris that ended in Bastille square.
Saturday¡¯s ¡°yellow vest¡± march in the capital also ended at Bastille, where small groups confronted police and a demonstrator suffered an eye wound that inflamed a debate about whether the authorities are using excessive force.
The ¡°yellow vest¡± protesters, who wear the fluorescent jackets French motorists are required to have in their cars, took to the streets in November to oppose a fuel tax rise. Their movement then developed into a broader revolt against the government.
Around 69,000 people attended the latest Saturday protests, including 4,000 in Paris, a lower turnout than the previous weekend, the interior minister said.
However, the injury to well-known activist Jerome Rodrigues attracted more television coverage on Sunday than the ¡°red scarves¡± march, as it heightened debate over use by police of dispersal grenades and so-called ¡°flashball¡± pellet guns.
To help quell discontent, Macron this month launched a series of public debates that he has promised will lead to changes.
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