Published 7/4/2023 2:59 PM | Edited 7/5/2023 2:11 PM
Demonstrations against racial violence by the French police completed a week this Tuesday (4). Today, President Emmanuel Macron announced that he will introduce a law to repair the billionaire damage caused by the protests.
The mobilizations began last Tuesday, after 17-year-old Nahel Merzouk was shot dead at close range by police in Nanterre, on the outskirts of Paris.
The protests are considered the most impactful since the “yellow vests” in 2019, and quickly spread across France. In the last balance of the Ministry of the Interior, 3,500 people were arrested and 12,200 cars were set on fire, in addition to the damage caused to 1,100 properties.
The damage to the Parisian transport system reaches 20 million euros. At least 39 buses were set on fire.
This Tuesday, Macron held a meeting with 200 mayors and said that the “peak” of the demonstrations was behind them. The French president promised politicians financial help to recover the damage.
“We are going to introduce an emergency law to reduce the deadlines, to have an accelerated procedure,” Macron said. Despite the promise, however, the French government did not provide a timeline for enacting the law.
Authorities are expected to approve today the release of a 20 million euro (R$ 104.5 million) aid fund to pay for the repairs, which include at least a hundred damaged public buildings.
Opposition to Macron accuses the government of losing its ability to maintain public safety and reduce economic inequalities in the country. The explosion of violence mirrors the ongoing social and racial tensions on the outskirts of large French cities.
Source: vermelho.org.br
