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Strike paralyses France

Vaiju Naravane

Millions take part in marches across the country

Paris: France came to a complete standstill on Tuesday as a nationwide strike got underway to protest against Government legislation that would allow employers to fire young under-26 recruits at any time, without explanation during a two-year-long trial period.

Unions claimed another success in their escalating campaign against the First Employment Contract (CPE), with three million people taking part in some 130 protest marches across the country.

Hundreds of thousands of people demonstrated in the streets of Paris, Lyon, Marseille and other major towns as schools, universities, post offices, banks and railway and airline services remained severely affected. Thousands of public school teachers from the nursery to the high school level marched with their students.

Clashes in Paris

In the capital, which has seen scenes of extreme violence between police and gangs of youths intent on wreaking havoc, 4,000 policemen and anti-riot forces were called out. Despite that, clashes took place as the rally reached the Republique area of Paris.

Unions have described this as a "make-or-break" situation.

"It is historic. It is unthinkable for the Prime Minister to stay fixed in his position. For us there is just one issue and that is withdrawal of this reform," said Bernard Thibault of the CGT union at the start of the biggest demonstration in Paris.

Unions and student groups are demanding withdrawal of the CPE, but Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin is offering only "adjustments" on its two most contentious aspects: a two-year trial period, and the free hand given to employers during that period to sack under 26-year-olds without explanation. Meanwhile, unions turned down an invitation from Mr. De Villepin to attend talks on the contested issue.

Though police personnel were deployed in the thousands to head off more violence from out-of-town trouble-makers, a gang of masked youths smashed cafe windows near the Place d'Italie in the south of the capital.

Visiting a police station near the route of the Paris march, Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy told officers their task was "first to protect the demonstrators, second, to arrest as many hooligans as possible, and third to protect passers-by and shops. Whatever the provocation, do not yield to it."

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