France to ban unauthorized protests, wearing of masks
France plans to ban participation in unsanctioned protests after about two months of anti-government “yellow vest” protests, French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe says.
Philippe said on Monday that the government would introduce a “new law punishing those who do not respect the requirement to declare (protests), those who take part in unauthorized demonstrations and those who arrive at demonstrations wearing face masks.”
The new legislation is set to ban known “troublemakers” from participating in protests, in the same way known football hooligans have been prevented from attending matches in stadiums in the past.
The onus would be on “the troublemakers, and not taxpayers, to pay for the damage caused” to businesses and property during the protests, the premier added.
The “Yellow Vest” movement initially erupted in November amid public outrage over a planned hike fuel prices. President Emmanuel Macron later backed down and suspended the hike, but the protests did not stop and turned into a broader campaign against high costs of living blamed on Macron’s economic policies.
Many of the “yellow vests” are demanding the resignation of Macron, a demand dismissed as undemocratic by the government.
“Those who question our institutions will not have the last word,” Philippe said, declaring that 80,000 security forces would be deployed across the country for the next round of protests.
The “yellow vest” campaign is said to be the biggest political crisis of Macron’s 20-month presidency and has brought his popularity ratings to an all-time low.
In recent weeks, some of the protests have turned into major riots described as the most violent clashes in France in decades.
Public anger appeared to have abated over the holiday period; however, the brief arrest on Wednesday of Eric Drouet, one of the leaders of the movement, seemed to have rekindled resentment among his supporters.
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