Demonstrators in the French city of Dijon burned effigies of President Emmanuel Macron and other politicians on Thursday, March 16, after the government forced through pension reforms without a parliamentary vote.

In footage from Dijon Actualites, four figures, representing Macron, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, Labor Minister Olivier Dussopt, and minister delegate Olivier Veran, are doused in flammable liquid and set ablaze.

In an interview with French radio outlet RTL, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin condemned the act and said, “The opposition is legitimate, the protests are legitimate, but wreaking havoc is not.”

The government invoked Article 49.3 of the constitution to force through unpopular reforms including raising the retirement age for most from 62 to 64. Credit: Dijon Actualites via Storyful

Video transcript

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