Protesters torch 'La Rotunde', French President Macron's favourite restaurant

Paris: In a new show of anger against Emmanuel Macron’s pension reforms, a large number of protesters clashed with French security forces on Thursday and set the French president’s favourite Paris restaurant La Rotonde on fire.

The protesters threw stones, bottles and flares at the security forces, eventually leading to the branded red awnings on the front of La Rotonde catching fire. However, firefighters arrived at the scene and took the situation under control, local media reported citing authorities.

Macron celebrated his victory at La Rotonde in the presidential election in 2017. He has also visited the expensive restaurant on many other occasions, occasionally dining there with foreign leaders.

The French president previously told reporters that he developed a fondness for the place during his student years. Recently, the bistro has become a frequent target of Macron’s opponents, who accuse him of being “the president of the rich.”

In January 2020, a fire started on the restaurant’s terrace, and 10 square meters of the property were burned. A few weeks later, police arrested a member of the Yellow Vests protest movement on suspicion of arson.

La Rotonde was opened in 1903 and became popular among the creative intellectuals in Paris between the two world wars. It has been visited by the likes of Ernest Hemingway, Jean Cocteau, Guillaume Apollinaire, and others.

Hundreds of thousands of people have filled the streets of France since January this year over the government’s decision to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64.

The scuffle between the security forces and protesters intensified even further last month after Macron used executive privilege to pass the pension reform bill without a parliamentary vote.

Meanwhile, France’s highest council on constitutional affairs is examining the bill to see if it’s constitutional. It will issue a ruling next week and Macron’s opponents hope the council will severely limit his proposal.

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