French authorities maintained closures or partial shutdowns at up to 500 high schools on Monday following a wave of nationwide student protests that resulted in significant property damage, dozens of staff injuries, and a severe injury to a teenage protester.
French Education Minister Edouard Geffray confirmed that several hundred upper high schools, known as lycées, were closed fully or partially due to security concerns. In the Île-de-France region surrounding Paris, Valérie Pécresse, president of the regional council, stated that more than a third of the region’s 468 high schools would remain shut on Monday.
The closures follow days of intense demonstrations during which 24 schools were burned or ransacked, and 78 education staff members were injured, according to figures released by Geffray. Officials indicated that Monday’s closures aimed to facilitate a “partial, progressive return to lessons.”
The violent turn in the demonstrations was marked by an incident involving a teenage protester who lost his hand. According to a police union source cited by news agency AFP, the student appeared to have picked up a explosive sting ball grenade—a type of tear gas grenade—which exploded in his hand.
High school students organized the movement to protest against inadequate conditions in French public education. Key grievances cited by student demonstrators include high rates of teacher absenteeism, overly long school days, and deteriorating infrastructure. Students also highlighted the absence of effective cooling systems during extreme heat events, noting that temperatures reached 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) last summer in facilities largely lacking air conditioning.
Addressing the unrest, Geffray attributed the violence to external political groups, stating that far-left activists had infiltrated and hijacked the high school student movement to engage in extreme violence.
The civil unrest comes as student protests begin to dominate political discussions ahead of France’s upcoming presidential election, where voters will choose a successor to President Emmanuel Macron, who is approaching his constitutional term limit.
Student organizers have called for the demonstrations to continue on Tuesday, asserting that the French government has failed to present concrete measures to address their operational and institutional complaints.
Sources
DW News: https://www.dw.com/en/hundreds-of-french-schools-shut-teen-loses-hand-in-protests/a-79542656?maca=en-rss-en-world-4025-rdf
Source: DW News
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Story synopsis gathered from: DW News — source
