France faces new protests as government seeks to prevent violence

Claire Bacala is standing by in central Paris for us, and we can go across to her now. Claire, there was a lot of back and forth over the designated route of today's protest here in Paris. What's the latest? So finally, it is beginning here, République, and the marchers will very soon start walking to Nation. The organizers, the trade unions, particularly the CGT, they had wanted the route to be from Bastille to Concorde. They want their demonstrations to happen in the most symbolic places, close to the positions of power here in France. The police, though, since October 17th, have been against that. They would rather demonstrations took place. In the outskirts of Paris, further away from shops and businesses, they have said, since the looting and vandalism that we saw on October 17th, that they don't want and they're unable to guarantee security in central areas. In the end, though, the decision came down late yesterday evening. A compromise was reached. And this demonstration is central, but it's not from Bastille to Concorde, as the organizers would have liked. It is from République to Nation. And you can see the crowds behind me. And now, beginning to march, they are making their way now from the République to Nation. This is what's been known as a convergence of struggles. So, different protest movements coming together as a united front. We have public sector workers, we have private sector workers, we have, of course, young people, students, high school students as well, pensioners, teachers coming together because they say they want... The minimum wage to be raised, they want public services to be protected and of course they want a better quality of education and conditions in young people's schools and in universities. So very much this demonstration getting going here in the centre of Paris, heading towards Nation later this afternoon. I'll be following you all afternoon here on France 24. Claire, thank you very much for that. Claire Bacalar reporting there.