[ad_1]
PARIS (Reuters) – Tens of thousands of people demonstrated Saturday in major French cities to demand action against climate change and support former environment minister Nicolas Hulot, who resigned government approach.
Environment activists gather to call on world leaders to take action against climate change in Marseille, France, on September 8, 2018. REUTERS / Jean-Paul Pelissier
Police said nearly 18,500 protesters took the streets in Paris to join a global campaign called "Rise for climate" and a French campaign launched in support of Hulot who resigned on August 28th.
Hulot said that he felt alone in the ministry. "Who would be effective alone? Where are my troops? Who is behind me? ", He said during a radio interview during which he announced his resignation.
Thousands of people have also marched in cities like Marseille, Strasbourg and Toulouse.
The departure of Hulot, who was one of the most popular ministers, dealt a blow to President Emmanuel Macron, whose popularity has declined in recent weeks after a post-election honeymoon period.
Hulot's graduation to the cabinet in mid-2017 was seen as a way to support the green image that France had obtained 18 months earlier by negotiating the Paris Agreement to fight greenhouse gas emissions. .
Macron, however, diluted Hulot's initiatives on issues such as reducing dependence on nuclear energy and banning glyphosate.
Opposition leaders such as former left-wing presidential candidates Jean-Luc Melenchon and Benoit Hamon participated in the demonstrations in Paris and Marseille.
Hulot himself thanked his supporters via his Twitter account.
"Citizens gathered everywhere in France and around the world have the power to make changes for the future of our children," he said on his Twitter account.
Report by Inti Landauro and Simon Carraud; edited by Jason Neely
