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French riot police fire tear gas at protesters

10 November 2013 04:18 (UTC +04:00)

On Saturday, police fired teargas and used water cannon to disperse the protesters who had gathered in Cotes-d'Armor in Brittany region to oppose the so-called eco-tax that aims to save one billion euros a year.

In return, the protesters pelted stones at police and shouted slogans against the government. They also put a security camera on fire.

"People struggle to pay their bills at the end of the month, and now we're going to eco-tax them," said one protester, pretending to strangle himself.

Similar protests were also held in other parts of the country, including in the major cities of Lyon and Marseille, and in the capital Paris.

The demonstrators say they are against the measure that will tax heavy goods vehicles to help finance rail projects while many people are jobless and struggling with poverty in the country.

The unemployment rate in France hit record highs in September, with nearly 3.3 million people out of work.

The Brittany region's farming and food industry, which accounts for a third of local jobs, has been hit hard by French economic crisis.

The long-drawn-out eurozone debt crisis, which began in Greece in late 2009 and later on reached Italy, Spain, France, Portugal, Britain, Ireland, and Cyprus, is viewed as a threat not only to Europe but also to many of the world’s other developed economies.

The worsening debt crisis has forced EU governments to adopt harsh austerity measures and tough economic reforms, which have triggered massive demonstrations in many European countries.