The demonstration lasted for more than a month! French students are dissatisfied with the government's response, and dozens of high schools are blocked again

French students have been demonstrating for more than a month to fight for educational resources, and today they blocked dozens of high schools. The United High School Student Organizations (USL) stated: "As long as our 10 demands are not met, (mobilization) will not stop."

According to statistics from the Ministry of Education, as of 9:30 a.m., 41 of approximately 3,700 high schools across the country were blocked.

In October, student groups asked the government to implement 10 emergency measures to respond to the dissatisfaction of high school and college students, such as renovating school buildings, reforming curriculum, and increasing manpower in education, health care, and tutoring.

The government proposed response measures last week, including increasing the manpower of the education system, capping the number of students per class at 28, adding 15,000 higher education places, and gradually replacing Parcoursup, the university application distribution system that has been criticized by students, by 2028. But the student groups were not satisfied and continued to call for mobilization.

In an interview with franceinfo this morning, USL Joint Secretary-General Marius Mesnil called on students to unite and discuss together, hoping to further expand the action tomorrow.

In addition, the Federation of High School and College Students also hopes to join the union mobilization on November 5. Major trade unions have called for a general strike on the 5th, and the "Yellow Vest" movement is preparing to mobilize again on the 7th to protest against the rising cost of living and the declining quality of public services.

Education Minister Édouard Geffray said that only a few high schools are currently on lockdown, mainly in the greater Paris area, northern France and the large city of Toulouse in the south. He reminded that this year is crucial for high school students who have not been in class for several weeks and are preparing to take their graduation exams. "Everyone has the freedom to protest, but students cannot be prevented from going to class."

But Maini retorted: "To pass the HKCEE, you must have teachers and school buildings with good environment, and this is exactly what we want... If the minister wants us to go back to classes, it depends on how he responds."

The French Prime Minister's Office said today that Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu can meet with high school student representatives again next week, when the commitments made, difficulties faced in implementation and subsequent decisions will be assessed.