Demonstration plans changed

The initial meeting point for a demonstration had been set on the Place de la Révolution in Besançon. However, the prefect of the Doubs region issued a decree prohibiting demonstrations in the city center from midnight to midnight, altering the plans of the intersyndical group, whose application for a demonstration had been submitted to the prefecture.

Legal challenge rejected

The intersyndical group responded by filing a request with the administrative court to suspend the prefectural decree, but this request was again rejected this Saturday morning by the court. The jurisdiction validated the necessity of an alternative route to the one declared.

Prefect's justification

The decree prohibiting demonstrations in the city center, considering that it preserves the freedom of demonstration as well as the visibility of the demands, while limiting the risks of public disorder and ensuring the safety of the demonstrators, stated the prefecture of the Doubs in its statement.

Security measures deployed

To ensure compliance with the decree, several gendarmerie trucks were deployed on Place de la Révolution from the beginning of the afternoon, according to a journalist present at the location. "Internal security forces are mobilized to ensure the smooth running of the demonstration," recalled the prefecture.

Demonstrators gather elsewhere

Demonstrators gathered in the Glacis area starting at 2 p.m. Among those present, the journalist noted the presence of the PCF, Lutte ouvrière, France Insoumise, and the Ecologists. Also present were families gathered among young and older people, all of them in music and in a "good child" atmosphere.

Route change and movement

About an hour later, these 3,000 people (according to the CGT) then proceeded to Place Flore and then to Rue Voirin to wander through the streets adjacent to the city center. More information to come. Statements collected on site by Hélène Loget.