"Many of my comrades are against the reform but do not demonstrate": in Bordeaux, Georges Le Bescond, 74, duly inserted in the RN, decided to pound the pavement, despite the "sectarianism of the unions which do not want us in the manoeuvres".

"It saddens me, we have to put the cause first", continues this retired military engineer, who disputes "the urgency of the reform", according to him "constrained by the European Union".

Among the 16,500 demonstrators in the capital of Gironde (more than four times more according to the organizers), a small local delegation of the RN made the trip, but stands on a sidewalk apart.

"If there were more of us and if we had federated a group, the banners, why not, but would we have been respected as we respect people on the left? I don't think so," said an activist. anonymous lepéniste according to whom, "one in two demonstrators in the parade votes RN", taking as proof the results of the "last legislative".

"Against all this government"

"This reform is unfair: working until the age of 64 will not be possible in arduous jobs", chants in the streets of Toulouse another RN sympathizer, "soon to be inserted", who does not wish to give her name.

And, according to this mother, "nothing justifies the demonization of the RN.

In Lille, Domitille, who also did not wish to give his surname, calls for "convergence" and "unity", recognizing that "it is not (his) first manifestation".

White fur coat and leather boots, the 50-year-old manifests alone, French flag marked with a cross of Lorraine in hand.

"Whatever our party or our political ideas, whether we are on the left or on the right, we must say no to what they want to impose on us", explains the one who voted for Le Pen in the presidential election and who says to herself "against this reform" and, "more generally, against this whole government".

"Beyond the Parties"

Tuesday, Marine Le Pen assured to "rejoice" and "support" the "mobilization which is expressed", while judging "natural that the elected officials of the RN oppose the National Assembly" and not in the street.

Where they could encounter a form of hostility, the boss of the CGT Philippe Martinez recommending them "vigorously not to come" because they "were not welcome".

Still, the strong unpopularity of the reform project and the success of the two days of mobilization questions certain party executives on the doctrine fixed a month ago, worried about being stolen the title of first opponent by the troops on the left.

The demonstration against the pension reform, in Paris, January 31, 2023 © Alain JOCARD / AFP

In Dunkirk, the municipal and regional councilor RN Adrien Nave marched for the second time in two weeks, French flag in hand, surrounded by fifteen activists.

Admittedly, this 31-year-old volunteer firefighter recognizes that Marine Le Pen did not "want to join the trade union centers which call for demonstrations when they had Emmanuel Macron elected".

But "that does not pose a problem (for him), in the sense that there are a lot of people who are unionized who did not vote for Emmanuel Macron and who are demonstrating rightly and with conviction because they think it is a reform unfair".

The same calls for the challenge to go "beyond the parties": "At some point, you have to be smart and show unity in the face of this reform".

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© 2023 AFP