French Strikes Stop Fuel Supply

French strikers blocked shipments at France’s 12 fuel refineries, prompting the government to bring in riot police.
French Strikes Stop Fuel Supply
CGT union leader Christophe Hiou holds up a microphone to speak to strikers blocking the entrance of the Total refinery to protest against the French government pension reform on October 15, 2010 in Saint-Nazaire, western France. French President Nicolas (Frank Perry/AFP/Getty Images)
10/15/2010
Updated:
10/16/2010
<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/StrikeOne105473103WEB_medium.jpg"><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/StrikeOne105473103WEB_medium.jpg" alt="CGT union leader Christophe Hiou holds up a microphone to speak to strikers blocking the entrance of the Total refinery to protest against the French government pension reform on October 15, 2010 in Saint-Nazaire, western France. French President Nicolas  (Frank Perry/AFP/Getty Images)" title="CGT union leader Christophe Hiou holds up a microphone to speak to strikers blocking the entrance of the Total refinery to protest against the French government pension reform on October 15, 2010 in Saint-Nazaire, western France. French President Nicolas  (Frank Perry/AFP/Getty Images)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-114123"/></a>
CGT union leader Christophe Hiou holds up a microphone to speak to strikers blocking the entrance of the Total refinery to protest against the French government pension reform on October 15, 2010 in Saint-Nazaire, western France. French President Nicolas  (Frank Perry/AFP/Getty Images)
French strikers blocked shipments at France’s 12 fuel refineries, prompting the government to bring in riot police to remove the strikers at three facilities, according to media reports.

The protests at fuel depots are part of a series of week-long nationwide demonstrations slated to last until next Tuesday. Public transit across the nation has been disrupted, and high-school students in some regions are walking out of class in sympathy with the strikers, reports say.

French transport minister Dominique Bussereau, explained the use of the policing by saying, “We can’t allow a shortage of fuel,” according to the New York Times. Bussereau also allowed companies to tap their emergency fuel supplies, to ease fears of fuel shortages.

Strikers also shut off the Trapil pipeline, which feeds France’s two main airports, Charles de Gaulle and Orly.

<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/Students105457656WEB_medium.jpg"><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/Students105457656WEB_medium.jpg" alt="High school students demonstrate in front of the Lycee Voltaire in Paris, on October 14, 2010 to protest against French government's pensions reform. (Pierre Verdy/AFP/Getty Images)" title="High school students demonstrate in front of the Lycee Voltaire in Paris, on October 14, 2010 to protest against French government's pensions reform. (Pierre Verdy/AFP/Getty Images)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-114124"/></a>
High school students demonstrate in front of the Lycee Voltaire in Paris, on October 14, 2010 to protest against French government's pensions reform. (Pierre Verdy/AFP/Getty Images)
Charles de Gaulle airport could run short of fuel early next week, while “Orly airport has stocks for 17 days,” AFP reports a Trapil company official as saying.

Strikers are opposing proposed pension reform measures which would raise the minimum retirement age from 60 to 62. This latest is the fourth nationwide demonstrations in the past five weeks.

French president Nicolas Sarkozy plans to continue with the pension reform bill despite the strikes, according to media reports.

Former French president Jacques Chirac proposed similar measures in 1995, but was forced to back down after a three-week long nationwide transportation strike.