Man protests French pension reform during Macron's Amsterdam visit

By Nur Asena Erturk

ANKARA (AA) - A young man staged a protest in Amsterdam on Wednesday over the pension reform in France.

The protest came just as President Emmanuel Macron arrived in the Netherlands on a two-day official visit on Tuesday.

The protest was held outside the Amsterdam University where Macron was scheduled to meet King Willem-Alexander, French daily Le Figaro said.

The man sang the "We are here, even if Macron does not want it" song, a popular anthem of the Yellow Vests protests, now widely sung by those against the pension reform.

Security guards at the venue tackled the man and shoved him to the ground.

While Macron was outlining his vision for the future of Europe at the Nexus Institute in The Hague on Tuesday, protesters unfurled a banner reading "President of violence and hypocrisy" and shouted: "Where is French democracy? Where did we lose it?"

"You have millions of people in the streets, conventions of climate have been put aside, what can you say when you talk about Europe?" one protester shouted out.

Macron resumed his speech and went on to defend the pension reform bill and the decision to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 by 2030.

The government unveiled the reform project in January and parliament started debating it the following month.

Workers and trade unions have expressed growing outrage by holding demonstrations and walkouts against the reform, which would also require at least 43 years of work to be eligible for a full pension.

Political and social tension rose on March 16 when Macron and Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne decided to use special constitutional powers to force the plan through without parliamentary approval.

The decision was driven by fear that lawmakers would be able to block the reforms as the government does not hold an absolute majority in parliament.

When the protests sometimes turned violent, police were accused of making arbitrary arrests and using force disproportionately.

The French Constitutional Council will finish examining the bill on April 14.

Trade unions are gearing up for a 12th round of protests on Thursday.