In France, large-scale protests by secondary school pupils over the state of the education system have entered their second week and have been accompanied by serious unrest. On Monday, 5 October, Between 400 and 500 secondary schools have partially or completely suspended face-to-face teaching for safety reasons. According to the Minister for Education, Édouard Joffrey, since the protests began, 24 educational establishments have been vandalised or set on fire, and 78 education workers have been injured.
- A large-scale protest movement by secondary school pupils is continuing in France.
- Between 400 and 500 secondary schools suspended teaching either completely or partially on 5 October.
- 24 educational establishments were vandalised or set on fire during the protests.
- Since the unrest began, 78 education workers have been injured.
- Law enforcement officers detained around 5,000 people, mostly teenagers.
Hundreds of schools have suspended lessons
French Minister for Education Édouard Joffrey stated that suitable conditions for teaching are not currently in place in hundreds of secondary schools.
Of the approximately 3,700 French lycées 400–500 establishments remain fully or partially closed. Some of them are gradually resuming lessons, although the situation depends on the safety of staff and pupils.
In total, the protest movement has already spread to hundreds of educational institutions across the country. According to the minister, 24 schools have, over the course of protests were «set alight or vandalised». At some protests, rubbish bins and other property were set alight; demonstrators threw objects at law enforcement officers, whilst the police used tear gas and other means to disperse the crowd.
Around 5,000 people have been detained
According to the French authorities, since the start of the most intense phase of the protests, the police have detained around 5,000 people. A significant proportion of those arrested are teenagers. The protests have grown into a nationwide movement, and clashes and arrests are now taking place not only in Paris but also in many other cities across France.
Separately, the Ministry of Education reported that 78 injured staff members from educational institutions from the outset of the events.
The French authorities claim that some of the protests may have been joined by radicalised individuals who are not directly linked to the school pupils. The protest organisers and some trade unions, for their part, have criticised the scale of the police arrests and the actions of the security forces.
What are French secondary school pupils calling for?
The protest movement began in mid-September in a Parisian suburb, after which it quickly spread across the country.
Among the pupils’ main complaints are:
- a shortage of teachers and school staff;
- no cover for absent lecturers;
- overcrowded classrooms;
- the poor condition of some school buildings;
- excessive academic workload;
- the pressure associated with the Parcoursup admissions system;
- insufficient funding for education, in the protesters’ view.
In some educational institutions, pupils complain that they can go for weeks without teachers for certain subjects.
The protests will continue
The organisers have already announced a new nationwide day of action on Tuesday, 6 October. Trade union representatives also plan to join the protests. The French authorities fear further clashes and are stepping up security measures around educational institutions and in major cities.
Thus, the protest, which began as a demand for increased funding and better learning conditions, turned within a few weeks into one of the largest youth mobilisations in France in recent years.
