A “dead city operation” in Rennes this Monday: what to expect? – Reindeer

After the government’s choice to resort to 49.3, opponents of pension reform are not giving up in Rennes. A “dead city operation” is scheduled for Monday, March 20 at the call of various groups of students and radical activists. Blockages of roads are envisaged in order to “block the economy” they write on social networks. Other actions are also planned by the unions during the day.

Road blockages

From 6 a.m. on Monday, several blocking points and filtering dams could be erected on the Rennes ring road and its surroundings – which should cause significant traffic difficulties.

Simultaneous operations of the same kind had already been carried out on Thursday March 16 in the Breton capital. A few hundred people (trade unionists, students, high school students and a few ultra individuals) had succeeded in completely paralyzing traffic for several hours in the Breton capital. Up to 45 kilometers of traffic jams had been identified in the morning.

This time, the demonstrators could be even more numerous. The call for a roadblock having been relayed by several unions such as UNSA Keolis, Solidaires 35 and the Departmental Union Social Action Force Ouvrière 35. “We are obviously going to join these actions”, indicates Jean-Charles Hellequin, departmental delegate at Solidaires 35. “The goal is to block different roads to paralyze the economy. I know that there will be many young people on deck, but also trade unionists and members of coordination groups like We All 35. We cannot remain indifferent after the use of 49.3 by the government. It causes a lot of anger.”

The bac exams disrupted?

Another appointment to watch: the written tests of specialties of the general and technological baccalaureates which start this Monday, March 20 and will last three days. But will they be able to take place in each establishment? Philippe Melaine, strongly in doubt after the call for a strike by an inter-union CGT éduc’action, SNLC-FO, SNES-FSU and Sud Education for the next two days.

“The tests start at 2 p.m., so morning roadblocks should not prevent high school students from going to the test sites, on the other hand, there will not necessarily be enough supervisors”, confides the secretary departmental union Snes-FSU 35. “We expect about 50% of striking personnel in the high schools of Ille-et-Vilaine. Blocking the ferry is not an end in itself, it is not pleasant to inflict that, it is a means of struggle. The administration will try to react but it will be on a case-by-case basis for each establishment. There is a strong possibility that tests will be canceled in some high schools.

To avoid this scenario at all costs, which would create a breach of equity between the candidates, the Ministry of National Education indicated in a press release that “additional supervisors” will be deployed in the most affected establishments.

Blocking waste collection sites

It has now been almost a week that waste collection sites have been blocked in the metropolis of Rennes. Trucks can neither enter nor leave the three Suez depots located in Pacé and Chartres-de-Bretagne. Faced with the trash cans piling up on the sidewalks and on the sides of the roads, Rennes Métropole asked “residents and professionals who can to bring in their bins so as not to leave them on the public highway”.

According to Jean-Charles Hellequin, from the Solidaires 35 union, the blockage should continue tomorrow morning. “We want everything to be blocked in Rennes so we will also persevere in blocking waste collection sites next week”.

Other actions to plan

After the government’s announcement to pass in force to raise the legal retirement age, other actions of economic blockages on the part of several unions are also not to be excluded from tomorrow morning in Rennes. “We will focus on economic blockages in the next three days,” says Fabrice Lerestif, departmental secretary of Force Ouvrière without revealing more. “A strike organizing committee met until late Friday evening to organize this”. The week promises to be eventful in the Breton capital.