Paris: Police sought to break up a crowd of mostly young people who had gathered in the central neighbourhood of Chatelet to protest\
Police blocked all approaches to the square. The demonstrators were joined by young radicals from the black bloc group who started throwing objects at police. In response, law enforcement officers used tear gas against the protesters, according to a Sputnik correspondent. Clashes between radicals and law enforcement officers erupted in Paris after the announcement of preliminary presidential election results, with police have used tear gas against the demonstrators, a Sputnik correspondent reports.
The French presidential election runoff was held on Sunday. The French Interior Ministry said after processing 80 per cent of the ballots in the second round of the election that Incumbent President Emmanuel Macron was in the lead with 54.81 per cent of the votes, while far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen had secured 45.19 per cent.
According to a Sputnik correspondent, young people started gathering in the Place de la Republique in the French capital after the preliminary results were announced. Slogans were heard both against Macron and Le Pen. After midnight, about 100 people remained in the square, who were insulting law enforcement officers and chanting “We are anti-fascists!”.
Police blocked all approaches to the square. The demonstrators were joined by young radicals from the black bloc group who started throwing objects at police. In response, law enforcement officers used tear gas against the protesters, according to a Sputnik correspondent. According to French media reports, demonstrations were held in several other French cities on Sunday night. Hundreds of people protested both against Le Pen and Macron in the port city of Marseille, France 3 TV said, adding that police began dispersing the crowd at around 10 pm local time.
Over the five-year course as France’s president, Emmanuel Macron is said to have gone from a young novice to a world leader and weighty decision-maker in the European Union. The 44-year-old, who is the youngest French president to date, has shown constant diplomatic activism, especially in Ukraine’s war with Russia, earning the confidence of not just his country but also international leaders for a second term.
Macron’s rise to the presidential seat was led by a series of political surprises — including a corruption scandal involving a key rival. In 2017, he beat far-right candidate Marine Le Pen in their runoff that year on promises to free up France’s economy to boost job creation and attract foreign investment. He beat her again Sunday, but the race was closer this time.
- Emmanuel Macron has won a second term, the first French president to do so in 20 years.
- Macron has been deeply involved in efforts to end Russia’s war in Ukraine. The outspoken 44-year-old centrist, with his non-stop diplomatic activism, doesn’t always get his way but has earned his place on the international scene.
- A strong advocate of entrepreneurial spirit, he eased France’s rules to hire and fire workers and made it harder to get unemployment benefits. Critics have accused him of destroying worker protections. However, during the pandemic, he acknowledged the crucial role of the state in supporting the economy, spending massively and vowing to support employees and businesses via public aid “whatever it costs.”
