French government minister Sébastien Lecornu has announced a half-day suspension of high school classes across France starting Wednesday, October 7, following a heated debate in the National Assembly over expanding student protests and upcoming school blockades.
Addressing lawmakers on Tuesday, October 6, Lecornu condemned the outbreak of violence during recent student demonstrations while firmly refuting all claims of police repression against participants during public rallies.
Under the new government measure, classes in secondary schools will be paused for a half-day period to allow headteachers to host internal democracy discussions with students regarding their demands. However, a headteachers union warned that the sudden directive would be difficult to put into practice across institutions on short notice.
The government intervention comes as nationwide demonstrations continue to gather momentum across the country, drawing high school pupils, university students, teachers, and parents marching alongside their children. Official figures published by the French Interior Ministry confirmed that 256,000 demonstrators took part in protests across France on Tuesday.
Protest clashes and police watchdog inquiries
Tensions have escalated outside several educational facilities following reports of violent incidents and civil unrest. The French police watchdog, known as the police des polices, has launched official investigations into multiple clashes and incidents recorded during the demonstrations.
In France, secondary institutions educating students during their final three years of schooling are known as lycées. Headteachers, referred to as proviseurs, manage daily school operations, student relations, and academic scheduling, making sudden nationwide timetable modifications particularly challenging for school administrators to organize effectively.
The parliamentary debate took place at the National Assembly, the lower house of the French Parliament located at the Palais Bourbon in Paris. During parliamentary sessions, cabinet ministers face questioning from opposition deputies on government policy, domestic crises, public order concerns, and the state response to social movements across the country.
Role of the Interior Ministry and next steps
Responsibility for internal security and public order in France rests with the Interior Ministry, which tracks demonstration turnout figures and coordinates police deployment. Allegations of excessive force or misconduct by police officers during public protests are independently investigated by the police inspectorate, commonly referred to as the police des polices.
High school administrators across France will begin implementing the half-day internal democracy sessions starting Wednesday, October 7, as headteachers attempt to facilitate dialogue over student demands while managing the threat of further coordinated school blockades.
