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French Demonstrations Against Retirement Reform Bill Gets Smaller

29 October 2010 20:05 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA. French Police say a half million people took to the streets in more than 270 demonstrations across the country Thursday, a continuation of the protests and strikes in opposition to a new bill that would raise the minimum retirement age to 62, APA reports quoting â€œThe Voice of Americaâ€.

A majority of the French oppose the bill and are trying to convince President Nicolas Sarkozy not to sign it into law.

The French came out into the streets to protest, for the seventh time in two months. This demonstration in the southern city of Marseille, like all the others, in protest of the government’s retirement reform bill. It would raise the minimum retirement age two years to 62. Patrick Parra, is with the ConfÃ©dÃ©ration franÃ§aise dÃ©mocratique du travail, or CFDT Union.

It is the first time that a law of this importance abandons social advantages, he says and says it’s a signal we have to keep up a strong mobilization. Parra says we perhaps can’t continue strikes and street protests as large as in recent days but we have to keep up a strong mobilization for our pensions.