PARIS -- Thousands of people marched in Paris and across France yesterday to protest expulsions of Gypsies and other new security measures adopted by President Nicolas Sarkozy's government.
Protesters blew whistles and beat drums in the capital, the largest demonstration among those in at least 135 cities and towns across France and elsewhere in Europe. Human-rights and anti-racism groups, labor unions and leftist political parties took part in the protests.
They accuse Sarkozy of stigmatizing minority groups such as Gypsies and seeking political gain with a security crackdown. They also say that he is violating French traditions of welcoming the oppressed, in a country that is one of the world's leading providers of political asylum.
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