Thousands March Through Paris to Protest Nuclear Testing Plans
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PARIS — Thousands of demonstrators marched through the French capital on Tuesday to protest the government’s plans to restart nuclear weapons tests in the South Pacific.
President Jacques Chirac announced last week that France would break a moratorium in place since 1992 to carry out eight more nuclear tests in French Polynesia, then put a definitive end to the program.
The decision spurred criticism from around the world.
“If your tests are without risk, then do them in Paris,” read one protester’s sign. “Restart testing in Correze,” read another, referring to the region in central France that Chirac considers his home.
“Definitive End to Tests. Halt to Proliferation. Abolition of Nuclear Arms,” read a huge banner preceding as many as 10,000 demonstrators who marched from the Bastille to the Place de la Nation in eastern Paris.
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