We'll get tough on troublemakers in pension protests
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France's interior minister on Wednesday denounced the new wave of sporadic violence which emerged in anti-pension reform protests across the country, mainly in Paris and the southern city of Lyon.
"The right of demonstration exists in our country as every French citizen should be able to freely express his opinions," but "it is not allowed to break the law, to burn, not the right to abuse, the right to pillage," Brice Hortefeux said.
"We do not tolerate and will not tolerate any overstepping and, since the beginning of these actions, we have arrested the troublemakers and will consistently bring them to justice," he said.
Police arrested more than 1,400 people in the past week on charges relating to violence during the protests, and 123 of them will face legal penalties. There were 62 police officers wounded in the same period, according to the minister.
New violent clashes erupted on Wednesday between youth and riot police in a Paris suburb and Lyon on the sidelines of youth protests against pension reform.
In Nanterre, in Paris's western suburbs, a car was burned and a police car was damaged Wednesday morning. Youths set fire to a truck in Lyon, where 79 young men were taken into custody on Tuesday.
"I gave very firm instructions to the police ... We will mobilize all the necessary means to get these delinquents," the minister said. "If there is a need to send specialized units ... I tell you, I will not hesitate to do so."
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