Thursday, October 15, 2026
English The World Federation of Teachers’ Unions (FISE), affiliated with the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU), stands with the high school and university students of France in their struggle for “education for all.”
The World Federation of Teachers’ Unions (FISE), affiliated with the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU), salutes and expresses its full and complete solidarity with the hundreds of thousands of high school and university students in France who, since mid-September 2026, have been engaged in protests and determined struggles to defend public education and advocate for “education for all”- the central slogan of their mobilizations.
Student precariousness, overcrowded classrooms, dilapidated facilities lacking essential equipment, thousands of unfilled teaching positions, social barriers, and discrimination: this is the reality of the French education system. Young people are responding en masse against budget cuts to education, at a time when the French government -much like the majority of governments worldwide- is spending vast sums on armaments while sacrificing wages, healthcare, and education.
Across the globe, education is a fundamental right, a common good, and a public responsibility. It cannot be reduced to a commodity, nor subjected to the logic of profitability, social selection, or privatization. The French youth rising up today courageously recall an essential truth: without a high-quality public education system accessible to all, there can be no democracy, no social justice, and no future for young people.
The FISE commends the maturity, dignity, and determination shown by this movement. It also acknowledges the commitment of education unions, parents’ associations, secondary school student organizations, and university student unions that are organizing, assisting, and supporting these mobilizations.
The FISE condemns in the strongest possible terms the police repression, mass detentions, and legal proceedings faced by young people who have mobilized to defend their legitimate rights to protest and organize collectively.
According to official figures as of October 14, 2026, French police and gendarmerie forces have placed 7950 individuals in custody since the protests began in mid-September 2026. A vast majority 6773, or 85% of those detained are minors, and 2735 young people are now facing legal prosecution. We say no to the criminalization of protest.
Schools and universities have reportedly been blocked, evacuated, or placed under heightened police surveillance, thereby obstructing the right to assembly and freedom of expression. Furthermore, instances of police violence have reportedly been documented and denounced by trade unions, associations, and observers of civil liberties.
The FISE points out that, for these young people, the freedom to protest and freedom of expression are fundamental rights guaranteed by: the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR, 1948), Article 19 (freedom of expression) and Article 20 (freedom of assembly and association); the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC, 1989), Article 13 (freedom of expression) and Article 15 (freedom of association and assembly); the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR, 1966), Articles 19 (freedom of expression) and 21 (the right to peaceful assembly); and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR, 1950), Article 10 (freedom of expression) and Article 11 (freedom of peaceful assembly and association).
The General Secretariat of the FISE demands:
- The immediate release of all young people detained or prosecuted for their participation in mobilizations and protests, and the dropping of all legal proceedings and administrative sanctions against high school and university students who have taken part in these mobilizations;
- An immediate end to police repression and strict respect for the right to protest;
- The opening of genuine negotiations with representative organizations of education staff, high school students, university students, and parents, regarding the demands put forward by the movement;
- Respect for and the promotion of public education as a fundamental, free, secular, democratic, and universally accessible public service.
The struggle of the youth in France is part of a global fight for education for all – against the commodification of schooling, against austerity policies, and against all forms of discrimination and exclusion in accessing knowledge.
The FISE, which brings together education unions from every continent, expresses its active solidarity and calls upon its member and associate organizations to:
1) Disseminate this statement and raise awareness about the situation in France;
2) Send messages of solidarity to French trade union organizations (representing educators, pupils, and students);
3) Organize acts of support (rallies, petitions, social media campaigns);
4) Call upon international institutions to address the violations of the rights to freedom of expression, trade union organization, and public liberties in France.
The FISE reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the youth currently in struggle. Education for all is not a concession; it is a right. Repression will not silence the demand for social and educational justice.
Long live the internationalist solidarity of education workers and the youth!
Education for all, now, in France and across the globe!
For the General Secretariat of the World Federation of Teachers’ Unions (FISE)
Affiliated to the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU)
General Secretary : Drissi Abderrazzak
