USEUROPEAFRICAASIA 中文雙語Fran?ais
    Home / World

    Gay marriage draft law prompts angry protests

    By Agencies in Paris | China Daily | Updated: 2013-03-26 08:09

     Gay marriage draft law prompts angry protests

    Demonstrators sit near the landmark Champs-Elysees during a protest march over France's planned legalization of same-sex marriage, in Paris, on Sunday. Long Jianwu / China News Service

    Paris police used tear gas and batons to fight crowds who pushed their way onto the landmark Champs-Elysees and toward the presidential palace as part of a huge protest against a draft law that will allow same-sex couples to marry and adopt children.

    Hundreds of thousands of people - conservative activists, schoolchildren with their parents, retirees, priests - converged on the capital on Sunday in a last-ditch bid to stop the bill. Many of the protesters were bused in from other French provinces.

    The violence took protesters and police by surprise, and suggested that the anti-gay marriage protests have become outlets for anger and disappointment in the presidency of Francois Hollande.

    The lower house of France's Parliament approved the "marriage for everyone" bill last month with a large majority, and it's facing a vote in the Senate next month. Both houses are dominated by Hollande's Socialist Party and its allies.

    Interior Minister Manuel Valls said there were "dozens of arrests".

    Surprising violence

    Authorities had earlier banned the protestors from marching on the Champs-Elysees. They followed a nearby route, and organizers claimed their numbers swelled to 1.4 million, while police gave an initial estimate of 300,000.

    Sustained protests led by opposition conservatives in this traditionally Catholic country have eroded support for the draft law in recent months, and organizers hope Sunday's march will swing the Senate debate against it.

    The first few hours of the protest were peaceful. But as it was meant to be winding down, about 100 youths tried to push past police barricades onto the Champs-Elysees, a tree-lined avenue that cuts through central Paris and draws throngs of tourists daily. In an indication of the sensitivity of the issue, protesters had been barred from marching on the Champs-Elysees.

    Police officers wrangled with the youths, some with shaven heads and others wearing hoods or masks, and fired tear gas to force them back. Gaining momentum, more and more protesters took side streets to reach the avenue, blocking a key intersection - and some made it within 100 meters of the grounds of the president's Elysee Palace. Police fired more tear gas, primarily at aggressive youths at the front of the crowd. Protesters of all ages were among those coughing and clutching their stinging eyes.

    "Hollande, Resignation!" they chanted, before breaking into the French anthem, La Marseillaise. When Hollande took office in May, most voters supported the idea of gay marriage and few expected it to face much of a challenge.

    AP - AFP

    (China Daily 03/26/2013 page10)

    Today's Top News

    Editor's picks

    Most Viewed

    Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
    License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

    Registration Number: 130349
    FOLLOW US
    免费无码中文字幕A级毛片| 小泽玛丽无码视频一区| 亚洲成a人在线看天堂无码 | 国产中文在线亚洲精品官网| 国产在线无码不卡影视影院| 综合久久久久久中文字幕亚洲国产国产综合一区首 | 国产成年无码久久久久毛片| 中文字幕一区日韩在线视频| 国内精品久久久人妻中文字幕| 东京热加勒比无码视频| 国产成人A亚洲精V品无码| 无码中文字幕日韩专区| 亚洲av无码成人精品国产| 久久久久亚洲精品无码蜜桃| 亚洲中文字幕无码永久在线| 久久无码AV中文出轨人妻| 久久亚洲精精品中文字幕| 亚洲av无码不卡私人影院| 精品无人区无码乱码毛片国产| 人妻少妇乱子伦无码视频专区| 中文字幕人妻无码专区| 无码人妻一区二区三区一| 中文字幕亚洲第一在线| 波多野结衣中文字幕久久| 天堂а√在线中文在线最新版| 亚洲精品无码永久在线观看| 久久久久亚洲精品无码网址| 国产免费无码AV片在线观看不卡| 无码国内精品人妻少妇蜜桃视频| 亚洲av永久无码制服河南实里 | 亚洲AV无码专区在线播放中文| 无码H黄肉动漫在线观看网站| 一区二区三区在线观看中文字幕 | 中文字幕亚洲精品无码| 中文字幕一区二区免费| 久久亚洲AV成人无码软件 | 精品无码av一区二区三区| 少妇人妻无码精品视频| 久久久久亚洲AV片无码下载蜜桃| 成人av片无码免费天天看| 蜜桃视频无码区在线观看|