This Saturday, the French Senate approved the pension reform promoted by President Emmanuel Macron amid the protests taking place in the streets, although it has lost momentum.

This is a step towards the reform taking effect, although it still has to be voted on in the National Assembly, which is expected to take place on Thursday.

“An important step has been taken,” said Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, after 195 senators voted in favor and 112 against. “Despite obstruction attempts by certain groups, the democratic debate took place.”

After an intense battle between the right and the left over a key article of the bill, the French Senate approves the postponement of the retirement age

Borne assured that the government “will continue to put energy into it” to “go to the end of the democratic process” and that this text will be voted on.

The controversial reform proposes to postpone the retirement age from 62 to 64 by 2030 and bring forward the requirement to contribute 43 years (and not 42 as before) to 2027 to get a full pension.

According to the Interior Ministry, 368,000 people demonstrated in France, 48,000 of them in Paris. The figure is lower than that of February 16, the day when the fewest citizens were mobilized since the start of the protest movement in late January. That day, the ministry reported 440,000 protesters nationwide, with 37,000 in the capital.

However, the CGT union estimated the number of protesters this Saturday at more than a million, with 300,000 in Paris. As of February 16, there were 1.3 million nationwide and also 300,000 in the capital.

Tensions over the reform reached a head this week after Macron’s refusal to meet with the unions, sparking “great anger”, according to Philippe Martinez, leader of the CGT union.

France wants to postpone the retirement age to 64 years

“When there are millions of people on the streets, when there are strikes and all we hear from the other side is silence, people ask: what else do we have to do to be heard?” he said, calling for a referendum about pensions. reform.

“Since the President of the Republic is so sure of himself, he must consult the people. We’ll see what people’s reaction is,’ he suggested.

“I implore those who run this country to come out of this form of social movement denial,” insisted his CFDT counterpart, Laurent Berger.