A round-up of news from the anti-CPE struggle in France, including Villepin's speech and responses, and the transport blockades across the country.
- Four student demonstrators and one policeman were injured on Thurday, the 6th April. At the end of the aftermoon, the police force removed some 450 students who were blocking the railways on the North Matabiau station and stopped traffic for an hour and half. According to the local authority, the five injured people were transferred to the hospital. A sixth injured person, who was amid the demonstrators, refused first aid.
-Christine Boutin of Villepins UMP has been pied by an anti-CPE young person at Tours
-A hundred high-school pupils protest against the CPE at the toll of Manosque, at the exit of A51
-Two months of prison for a young man arrested on Tuesday in Rheims at the time of incidents in the margins of an anti-CPE demonstration
-A private bill of abrogation of the CPE will be deposited on Friday by the senators of the Parti Socialist, PCF, Greens and radicals of left
-A high-school pupil from Rouen is reported to be in the 8th day of hunger strike against the CPE
Meanwhile:
-After having blocked the Saint-Lazare station in Paris, anti-CPE demonstrators have blocked the Gare du Nord
-Railways invaded in Toulouse by anti-CPE students and high-school pupils
-The station of Caen Nouvelle has been blocked by several hundred high-school pupils and students in Caen. Some are already assembled on the rails, report Ouest France
-The downtown area of Laval completely paralysed, report Ouest France. Several dozens high-school pupils prevent the access to the downtown area of Laval, since the beginning of the afternoon, within the framework of an action against the CPE. For the moment, the police force awaits the instructions of the prefecture.
-In Brest sports students have stormed the Chamber of Commerce. As all the entrance doors are closed, they have just climbed the walls to reach the roof. They throw eggs on the police force, Ouest France report.
Meanwhile across town, the bridge of Iroise has blocked in the direction Brest-Quimper. Only one way is free. It allows the cars coming from Quimper to return in Brest, members of the anti-riot polices are on the spot and face the demonstrators.
-Villepin speaks
"let us let the discussions continue. After this time of dialogue, we will draw the conclusions together and we will make, under the authority of the president of the Republic, the choices necessary to combat unemployment"
"everyone must be able to prepare and pass its examinations normally. The compliance with the republican rules is a condition necessary of the return to a state of calm"
"it is time to leave the crisis", "the priority is with the appeasing"
Villepin requires of the two sides of industry "to recognize that flexibility is a means necessary to give an employment to all"
"it is necessary to give to the young people their place in our society"
"the government will begin a great debate on the bonds between the university and employment"
"what we want is to gain the battle for the employment of the young people... to find solutions with those which are confronted with greatest precariousness"
-In responce to Villepins speach, FO trade unionist Jean-Claude Mailly said that Villepin is "out of the real time [reality]"
-the "precondition to any discussion" is "the withdrawal of the CPE" say trade union Sud Solidaires
-to begin the debate, Villepin must above all repeal the CPE, says Alain Olive of Unsa
-Jack Lang: "Domenique de Villepin doesn't announce anything concrete, nothing precise - nothing in any case that the young people can accept"
"youth suffers from [this situation], the country suffers from it, everyone suffers from it, why this almost childish stubborness?"
"He is intoxicated by his own words. He reminds me of the words of the song by Dalida: Words, words, words... "
- An Airbus A380 convoy blocked amidst widespread transport disruptions
In the middle of the night, around a hundred anti-CPE students blocked a road localised on the Norh-West of Toulouse. The demonstration prevented the traffic of an Airbus convoy. VIDEO CLIP
The action took place at 0.45 am. The sit-in ended at 3.10am according to the police force. The students sat down in front of the convoy at less than one kilometer of the joining factory for Airbus A 380, nammed Jean-Luc Lagardère, at Blagnac.
-The access to the airport of Orly was blocked by several hundreds of anti-CPE demonstrators
-Occupations of railways and anti-CPE demonstrations anti-CPE Nord-Pas-de-Calais
-circulation paralysed in Limoges since 07h30 by road blockings installed by students and high-school pupils
-blocking of a sliproad on the way into Nantes by a hundred demonstrators, other roads blocked in Rennes, Lorient and Quimper
-access to the island of Oléron blocked by high-school pupils
-rail traffic blocked at the Gare d'Est in Paris
-several dozenshigh-school pupils and trade unionists carried out a "toll free" operation this morning on the A4 close to Rheims
-demonstrators block the accesses to the industrial park of Boulogne-sur-Mer
-The St-Lazare station in Paris also blocked, for just fifteen minutes, by anti-CPE demonstrators
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