Yellow Vest Leader Fined €2000, Protest Banned East France

A Paris court sentenced one of the leaders of the yellow vest protests Eric Drouet to a 2,000-euro fine, for organizing two unauthorized protests on Dec. 22 and Jan. 2. Moreover, security banned a protest for the first time for 20 weeks, eastern France.

"A fine of two thousand euros, of which 500 euros is suspended", Drouet's lawyer Kheops Lara told reporters on Friday.

Lara said he regretted the court's decision, adding that he intends to protest the sentence.

"This is fine, I think, will damage the image of France and the French justice", the lawyer said.

[caption id="attachment_43038" align="aligncenter" width="768"] Protesters run away as tear gas is fired during 19th round of "yellow vests" protests in Nice, France, March 23, 2019. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY[/caption]

Drouet himself was not present at the court session, as he was busy with his job, the lawyer explained.

Lara also recalled that two weeks ago Drouet had publicly said that he had stopped participating in protest rallies and intended to look for other ways of action for the "yellow vests".

"I do not know whether he would participate in the rally on March 30", the lawyer added.

According to media reports, during the court hearing on Feb. 15, the prosecutor demanded Drouet a suspended sentence of one month in prison and a fine of 500 euros.

Drouet, who was one of the initiators of the first yellow vests rally, was twice detained by law enforcement agencies.

[caption id="attachment_43039" align="aligncenter" width="798"] Protesters wearing yellow vests attend a demonstration in front of the Sacre-Coeur Basilica of Montmartre during the Act XIX (the 19th consecutive national protest on Saturday) of the "yellow vests" movement in Paris, France, March 23, 2019. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier[/caption]

On June 5, Drouet will be tried again over "carrying of prohibited weapons" at the rally on Dec.22.

The wave of the yellow vests rallies started in France in mid-November over planned hikes in fuel taxes. While the French government abandoned its plans to raise fuel taxes and introduced other measures to improve the country's socioeconomic situation, protesters continue to take to the streets across France every weekend for demonstrators to express their discontent with government's policies.

Today, the "yellow vests" are meeting for the twentieth Saturday mobilization. Parades have been announced in Marseille, Rennes, Caen, Rouen, Montbeliard, Strasbourg or Nice.

In the meantime, the local security forces announced on Friday cancellation of protests in the Champs-Elysees and some provincial towns.

For the first time since the beginning of the Yellow Vests’ protests, the security decided to ban demonstrations in the hyper-center of Saint-Etienne, in east-central France. Whosever breaks this prohibition would be liable to a fine of 135 euros.

[caption id="attachment_43040" align="aligncenter" width="767"] Riot police officers detain a demonstrator during 19th round of "yellow vests" protests in Nice, France, March 23, 2019. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard[/caption]