Protests over high fuel price widen for fifth day

Protests against high fuel prices widened for the fifth day yesterday, despite appeals from government ministers and the president of a major hauliers' federation to lift blockades.

The demonstrations have become more confused, with lorry drivers refusing to observe agreements made by their representatives in Paris. What started as a "diesel front" of haulage company owners and farmers protesting against the cost of fuel had by yesterday grown to encompass ambulance drivers, mechanics, builders, restaurant owners and travelling salesmen.

The protests now constitute an amorphous "anti-tax front" whose grievances include VAT, social security payments and the high level of taxation in France in general.

Eighty-five demonstrations were reported across France yesterday, compared to 50 on Thursday. These protests included roadblocks in town centres and bonfires on railway tracks, in addition to continuing blockades around 99 refineries and fuel storage sites.

The National Federation of Road Transporters (FNTR), which represents 15,000 French haulage companies, yesterday accepted an offer made by the transport minister, Mr Jean-Claude Gayssot. The FNTR's president, Mr Rene Petit, claimed the agreement was a victory. "For us, the crisis is over. Work can resume," he said.

But hauliers on barricades across the country said they saw no difference between the deal accepted yesterday and the one they had unanimously rejected on Wednesday. The Midi-Pyrenees branch of the FNTR not only refused to lift its blockades, it called for Mr Petit's resignation. The response was the same in Strasbourg and Bordeaux. Some FNTR members said they would join UNOSTRA, another hauliers' group, whose 4,300 members decided to continue their protests.

About half of French haulage companies, tour bus operators and taxi-drivers (except in Lyon) earlier agreed to stop their protests. But the multiplication of groups - and the impossibility of negotiating agreements with all of them - could leave Prime Minister Lionel Jospin's government with little choice but to use force.

The ministers of agriculture, transport and the interior have all appealed for the demonstrations to stop. "The time has come to lift the barricades," the Interior Minister, Mr Daniel Vaillant, said. "The French people, their health services, their borders, cannot be blocked indefinitely." The spokesman for the Gaullist RPR, Mr Patrick Devedjian, noted that "the army has the means to move heavy freight lorries."

If the hauliers' protest ended, farmers' unions say they would reinforce the 86 barricades where they are present. Farmers moved more tractors - and even cattle - to barricades yesterday after the FNTR agreement was announced. The main farmers' unions were to meet the Agriculture Minister, Mr Jean Glavany, again last night. The farmers' chief demand now is a reduction in social security charges to compensate for fuel costs, like that given to fishermen last week.

After five days of the blockade, 80 per cent of French petrol stations are short of fuel or shut down completely. Air France yesterday suspended inter-city flights between Nantes, Nice, Montpellier, Rennes and Lyon. At least 39 flights were cancelled and regional flights must now stop over in Paris, where aviation fuel is supplied through pipelines.

There was no rubbish collection in the city of St Etienne yesterday because the municipality said it was running low on fuel. Le Havre has stopped cleaning streets and reduced public transport service for the same reason.

Farmers on tractors continued to disrupt car and lorry traffic bound for the Channel Tunnel at Calais for the second day, and boatmen blocked the River Oise as well as the Seine. Coca-Cola announced it will stop all production in France on Monday because it is running out of ingredients and packaging materials. Perrier-Vittel and Danone reported similar problems.