France
France: Thousands demonstrate against education cuts
By Antoine Lerougetel, January 20, 2009
Up to 60,000 people demonstrated on January 17 throughout France against education cuts. Some 13,500 posts are to be lost in schools in 2009 after cuts of 11,500 in 2008; more than 80,000 posts are du...
Sarkozy's “new capitalism”
January 16, 2009
French President Sarkozy's promise of a morally renewed capitalism has nothing progressive to offer. The state whose influence he intends to increase is a capitalist state. It defends the interests of...
France: Dray scandal hits student, anti-racist groups
By Kumaran Ira and Alex Lantier, January 14, 2009
Julien Dray, a prominent member of France’s Socialist Party and formerly of the Ligue Communiste Révolutionnaire, faces an embezzlement investigation into funds he drew on the accounts of an anti-r...
Mass demonstrations in France against the Israeli assault on Gaza
By Senthooran Ravee and Stephane Hugues and Antoine Lerougetel, January 12, 2009
Mass demonstrations took place in 90 cities and towns in France on Saturday against the Israeli war on Gaza.
French Communist Party congress reveals advanced crisis
By Francis Dubois and Pierre Mabut, January 10, 2009
The French Communist Party held its 34th congress in the Paris suburb of La Défense December 11-14. Whatever its official business, the congress clearly was dominated by the party’s extreme crisis ...
France: Sarkozy moves to control public television
By Olivier Laurent, January 7, 2009
President Nicolas Sarkozy’s plans to strengthen his control over French public television are being put into action.
France: Jean-Luc Mélenchon launches the Left Party
By Antoine Lerougetel and Peter Schwarz, December 27, 2008
Senator Jean-Luc Mélenchon and approximately 1,000 supporters have split from the French Socialist Party and set up a new party, the Parti de Gauche (Left Party) based on the program of capitalist re...
French president proposes repressive “reform” of mental health care
By Jacques Valentin, December 22, 2008
French President Nicolas Sarkozy is seizing on an isolated case of violence to implement repressive “law and order” controls on all mental health care patients.
Amid fears Greek demonstrations could spread
Government postpones French high school reform
By Kumaran Ira, December 19, 2008
The French government has temporarily shelved an unpopular high school reform, fearing spread of the “Greek syndrome.”
France: The LCR and the unions betray planned rail strike
By Antoine Lerougetel, December 19, 2008
The calling off of last month’s planned rail strike was a significant betrayal by the French trade unions, led by the General Confederation of Labour (CGT). The response to this event by Olivier Bes...
France: high school students protest education reform
By Alex Lantier and Senthooran Ravee, December 19, 2008
The WSWS interviewed high school students participating in a demonstration in Paris on Thursday.
French government’s emergency budget deepens social divide
By Pierre Mabut, December 9, 2008
French President Nicolas Sarkozy announced a raft of economic measures December 4 amounting to €26 billion (US$33 billion) as part of an effort to refloat the economy in 2009 in the face of the worl...
