France explodes with ‘Block Everything’ protests, echoes Nepal unrest

France once again found itself convulsed by protest on Wednesday, as demonstrators blocked roads, lit fires, and clashed with police in Paris and several other cities. The so-called 'Block Everything' movement, organised largely online over the summer, set out to paralyse the country in a show of defiance aimed squarely at President Emmanuel Macron and his newly appointed prime minister.

At its core, the movement channels anger over soaring living costs, unpopular reforms, and a widespread feeling that Macron’s government is aloof and unaccountable. Organisers urged citizens to bring the country to a halt, saying only disruption would force the political establishment to listen. “We are tired of speeches — the streets are the only language left,” one protester in Paris was quoted as saying in international media reports.

Authorities responded with an extraordinary deployment of 80,000 police officers nationwide. Yet even this heavy security presence could not prevent disruptions in key cities. As the day progressed, interior minister Bruno Retailleau reported nearly 200 arrests, while security forces fired repeated volleys of tear gas to disperse barricades and scattered groups of protesters.

The demonstrations, though falling short of their grand promise to grind France to a halt, nonetheless underscored the lingering volatility of French politics. Protesters managed to set a bus ablaze in Rennes, disrupt rail traffic in the southwest by damaging a power line, and bring parts of Paris to a standstill. Retailleau accused them of trying to create a “climate of insurrection”, warning that the government would act firmly against “those who seek chaos under the guise of protest”.

This mobilisation builds on a long tradition of mass movements in France — from the Yellow Vest protests of 2018–19 to repeated strikes over pension reforms and economic grievances. What distinguishes 'Block Everything' is its digitally driven nature and timing: Macron is navigating his administration with a new prime minister, and protesters seem intent on delivering what one labour leader described as “a baptism by fire for this government”.

Analysts suggest that the protests highlight a widening trust gap between Macron’s administration and ordinary citizens. “There is a profound sense of disconnect,” media reports quoted Paris-based political scientist Claire Dubois as saying. “People feel the government is unresponsive to their concerns, so they are resorting to disruptive tactics to force acknowledgment.”

The French movement is also part of a wider global wave of digitally-fuelled unrest. In Nepal, simmering anger over institutional corruption and nepotism have exploded after the government banned social media platforms, a move widely seen as an attack on freedom of expression.

What began as online anger rapidly spilled onto the streets, with young demonstrators torching government buildings, including parliament itself. At least 19 people have been killed, and Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli was forced to resign after days of escalating violence.

“The energy of Nepal’s protests is raw and driven by a generation that feels excluded from the political process,” South Asia analyst Anil Shrestha has told media outlets. “They are not just rejecting a ban on TikTok — they are rejecting a system they believe is corrupt and unaccountable.”

The contrast with France is stark. While Nepal’s unrest has pushed the country into a full-blown political crisis, France’s turmoil remains more contained. Police acted swiftly to dismantle barricades, limiting the scale of disruption, and Macron’s government, though bruised, is still intact. Yet, the symbolism matters.

For now, 'Block Everything' has not lived up to its name. But its emergence signals that the embers of protest in France are far from extinguished — and that from Kathmandu to Paris, citizens are increasingly willing to confront governments they see as deaf to their demands.

With AP/PTI inputs