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Police in Paris clashed with protesters against President Emmanuel Macron’s plan. Photo by Reuters
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Police in Paris clashed with protesters against President Emmanuel Macron’s plan to impose a certificate of vaccination against covid or a negative urinal test for admission to bars, restaurants and cinemas from next month, Reuters reported.
Macron announced this week radical measures to combat the rapid growth of new coronavirus cases, including mandatory vaccination for healthcare workers and new rules on health gaps for the general public.
With these steps, the French president went further than most European countries at a time when the highly contagious version of the Delta virus is fueling a new wave of pandemics, and other governments are watching closely the reaction of French society.
Police used tear gas several times after groups of protesters overturned trash cans and set fire to an excavator. Some demonstrators, who stayed away from the clashes, wore badges reading “No to the healthy pass.”
Some critics of Macron’s plan, which calls for malls, cafes, bars and restaurants to check all customers for a health pass from August, have accused the president of violating freedoms and discriminating against those who have not been vaccinated.
“This is complete arbitrariness and absolutely undemocratic,” said one of the protesters, who introduced himself as Jean-Louis.
Macron says vaccines are the best way for France to return to normalcy, and says he encourages as many people as possible to get immunized.
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