The Paris Police Prefecture issued an order on Monday, November 2, banning a demonstration that Interfac Île-de-France had planned for Tuesday in central Paris, the student collective told Agence France-Presse.
Interfac Île-de-France, which describes itself as a general assembly representing students from universities in the Paris region, had declared a route from the Panthéon in the fifth arrondissement to the headquarters of the Medef employers’ organization in the seventh arrondissement.
The prefecture said the proposed route was incompatible with current security requirements amid an extremely tense social climate. It also pointed to the Panthéon’s status as a major tourist site, where large crowds are common. Authorities proposed an alternative route on the outskirts of the capital, between the Porte de Charenton and Porte de Montreuil.
The collective has rejected that proposal. Coppélia Moreau, one of its members, said Interfac would challenge the ban before the administrative court, criticizing what she described as a broad restriction on demonstrations in Paris.
Interfac is referring to a previous case from October 22, when the administrative courts urgently suspended a police order banning a demonstration organized by the group between the Pitié-Salpêtrière hospital and Bastille. However, because the prefect had not received the court’s reasoning, he concluded that security conditions did not allow the march to proceed and authorized a static gathering instead.
Sources: Le Monde Politique.