Martine Desjardins, who represents more than 125,000 students in her role as president of the federation of university students in Quebec, said protesters had been "peaceful" on Wednesday's march. "I still think it's terrible but I think it's very important not to give criminal records to idealistic students." Montreal police constable Daniel Fortier, who told reporters rocks were thrown at police, said most of those arrested would face municipal bylaw infractions for being at an illegal assembly. Some student organisers said that the introduction of the bill, far from cowing the demonstrations, had actually brought more support for their cause. "In three months: 2500 arrests / Night of May 23: 450 arrests - worrisome arrests that show how improvised Bill 78 is," Blouin wrote on Twitter. "We've seen from the outset that the population is behind us and, more than ever, people want to be able to exercise their right to freedom of expression, freedom of association and the right to take part in peaceful demonstrations," Dejsardins said.
– With countless students taking to the streets of Quebec to protest tuition hikes, the number of arrests over the last three months has already hit 2,500—and it's still growing. Protesters were initially furious over the increased fees; now they're also opposing a new law limiting demonstration rights, the Guardian reports. Bill 78 requires protesters to get a permit and give police eight hours' notice before holding a demonstration. But it hasn't held protesters back: Some 300,000 marched in Montreal Tuesday, prompting 100 arrests. The next night, police let what they dubbed an illegal protest continue for four hours, then began arrests, with 518 people ultimately detained. While protesters say they were peaceful, police say rocks were hurled at them. Still, students' efforts continued last night, expanding outside of Montreal and Quebec City to smaller towns and featuring marchers clanging pots and pans, the Winnipeg Free Press reports. (Elsewhere in North America, students are voicing their anger over a very different issue: Mexico's presidential election.)