Defying a new law that Amnesty International and French Human Right groups fear will trample civil liberties unnecessarily, thousands came to participate in violation of the march ban.
Reuters
Green Business | Sun Nov 29, 2015 10:08am EST
From penguins to Pope's shoes, climate rallies pressure U.N. summit
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Hopes are high that the Paris summit will not fail like the previous such meeting six years ago in Copenhagen.
But all sides say pledges made in Paris will be insufficient to limit a rise in global temperatures to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels, widely viewed as a threshold for dangerous changes in the planet's climate system.
Almost all the demonstrations were peaceful but, after the human chain protest in Paris, riot police fired tear gas and clashed with about 200 protesters, some wearing masks, in the Place de la Republique.
Demonstrators carried banners calling for the defense of the climate and democracy. The square has been a gathering place for Parisians since the Nov. 13 attacks.
Using the state of emergency rules, police put 24 green activists under house arrest ahead of the summit, saying they were suspected of planning violent protests.
http://www.france24.com/en/20151129-climate-protesters-clash-with-police-paris-cop21
France 24 France
Climate protesters clash with police in Paris
Police in Paris fired teargas Sunday in clashes with climate change activists who pelted them with objects during a demonstration ahead of the COP21 climate talks in the French capital.
Police said around 100 people had been detained during the clashes.
A march planned for Sunday in Paris ahead of the UN climate change summit taking place at Le Bourget outside the capital was banned by police under the state of emergency rules imposed after the November 13 attacks, which were claimed by Islamic State group militants.
Police also put 24 green activists under house arrest ahead of the summit saying they were suspected of planning violent protests.
Instead of marching, activists had earlier Sunday covered the Place de la République with thousands of shoes – including a pair of trainers left by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
Around 4,500 demonstrators also formed a human chain through the city, passing near the Bataclan concert hall where 90 people were killed in the terror attacks.
Find out what’s supporters of Global Climate March are doing near you, here:
The Global Climate March is happening now!
On the eve of the biggest U.N. climate talks of the decade, we're taking to the streets all around the world.
The French government is prohibiting the Global Climate March planned in Paris for 29 November — there has never been a greater need for Global Climate Marches throughout the rest of the world, which will continue as planned. Love will win out over fear, and our movement will win over injustice.
See the latest photos + Find a march near you →
Sunday, Nov 29, 2015 · 11:28:40 PM +00:00 · divineorder
Climate group distances from violent protesters in Paris
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In a statement, the climate group 350.org said that the violent protesters violated the "nonviolent pledge that every group involved in the climate coalition" agreed to.
The statement expressed hope that France wouldn't clamp down further on freedoms during the conference following the incident.
Climate change negotiations in Paris have started with a moment of silence and commemoration for the victims of the attacks in the French capital.