Wednesday is the 51st of March. According to a large crowd which assembles each night in the Place de la République in Paris, time froze on the day the demonstrations began. The month of March cannot end until a “new world” begins.

The Nuit Debout – “arise at night” – movement describes itself as a gathering of ordinary citizens who want to create a fairer world. They want, they say, a “genuine democracy” which is not dominated by big money and corrupt politicians. They say they have “no leaders, no demands, no pre-fixed ideas”.

There are poetry readings and concerts and pop-up food stalls, but mostly there are interminable “general meetings”. Anyone can talk for five minutes, so long as they are prepared to wait their turn. The crowd, up to 3,000 people some nights, votes by cheers or jeers or elaborate arm signals.

In the past few days, another, uglier face of Nuit Debout – some suggest the real face – has appeared. There have been violent, minority breakaway marches which have smashed bank windows, burnt cars and fought running battles with the police.

A couple of days ago, the right-wing French philosopher Alain Finkielkraut went along to see what all the fuss was about. He was there for about an hour before he was recognised from his frequent TV appearances. A small band of nuitdeboutistes were said to have screamed and spat at him. He and his wife were bundled off the square by the Nuit Debout security team “for their own safety”.

Mr Finkielkraut, 66, a lefty in his youth, was a minor player in the May 1968 Paris student uprising to which Nuit Debout has been compared. For many years now, he has been a spokesman for the “identity” politics of the right. Like the nuitdeboutistes, he detests the modern, liberal, globalised world, but for other reasons.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 11 August 2020 French Prime Minister Jean Castex is helped by a member of staff to put a protective suit on prior to his visit at the CHU hospital in Montpellier AFP via Getty World news in pictures 10 August 2020 Locals harvest their potatoes as Mount Sinabung spews volcanic ash in Karo, North Sumatra province, Indonesia Antara Foto/Reuters World news in pictures 9 August 2020 Doves fly over the Peace Statue at Nagasaki Peace Park during the memorial ceremony held for the 75th anniversary of the atomic bombing EPA World news in pictures 8 August 2020 Anti-government protesters try to remove concrete wall that installed by security forces to prevent protesters reaching the Parliament square, during a protest against the political elites and the government after this week's deadly explosion in Beirut AP World news in pictures 7 August 2020 A protester throws a stone towards Israeli forces in the village of Turmus Aya, north of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, following a march by Palestinians against the building of Israeli settlements AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 August 2020 A woman yells as soldiers block a road for French President Emmanuel Macron's visit the Gemmayzeh neighborhood. The area in Beirut suffered extensive damage from the explosion at the seaport AP World news in pictures 5 August 2020 Damage at the site of Tuesday's blast in Beirut's port area, Lebanon Reuters World news in pictures 4 August 2020 A large explosion in the Lebanese capital Beirut. The blast, which rattled entire buildings and broke glass, was felt in several parts of the city AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 August 2020 A general view shows the new road bridge in Genoa, Italy ahead of its official inauguration, after it was rebuilt following its collapse on August 14, 2018 which killed 43 people Reuters World news in pictures 2 August 2020 Empty stall spaces are seen hours before a citywide curfew is introduced in Melbourne, Australia EPA World news in pictures 1 August 2020 People take part in a demonstration by the initiative "Querdenken-711" with the slogan "the end of the pandemic - the day of freedom" to protest against the current measurements to curb the spread of COVID-19 in Berlin, Germany AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 July 2020 Pilgrims circumambulating around the Kaaba, the holiest shrine in the Grand mosque in Mecca. Muslim pilgrims converged today on Saudi Arabia's Mount Arafat for the climax of this year's hajj, the smallest in modern times and a sharp contrast to the massive crowds of previous years Saudi Ministry of Media/AFP World news in pictures 30 July 2020 The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission lifts off at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. The mission is part of the USA's largest moon to Mars exploration. Nasa will attempt to establish a sustained human presence on and around the moon by 2028 through their Artemis programme EPA World news in pictures 29 July 2020 A woman refreshes herself in a outdoor pool in summer temperatures in Ehingen, Germany dpa via AP World news in pictures 28 July 2020 Malaysia's former prime minister Najib Razak speaks to the media after he was found guilty in his corruption trial in Kuala Lumpur AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 July 2020 North Korean leader Kim Jong Un poses for a photograph after conferring commemorative pistols to leading commanding officers of the armed forces on the 67th anniversary of the "Day of Victory in the Great Fatherland Liberation War". Which marks the signing of the Korean War armistice KCNA via Reuters

In an article in the centre-right newspaper Le Figaro, Mr Finkielkraut said that his experience had revealed the truth about the strange, nightly gatherings in the Place de la République (and smaller spin-offs in other French cities).

“Nuit Debout is a private club,” he wrote. “In this pretence at a citizen’s forum, they celebrate otherness but repress all other viewpoints. ‘The same’ debates feverishly with ‘the same’. Those who claim to be revitalising democracy… are reinventing totalitarianism.”

Mr Finkielkraut has a point. There is an element of charlatanry in Nuit Debout. The movement is not so leaderless as it claims. The core nuitdeboutistes come from the various tribes of the French extreme gauche – anti-capitalist, anti-market, anti-trade, pro-migrant and pro-homeless, anti-consumption, anti-advertising, anti-America and anti-European Union.

Nuit Debout is a revolutionary love-in bubble in the centre of a completely indifferent city <p>Philosopher, Alain Finkielkraut</p>

The movement was started by a group called Convergence des luttes (convergence of the struggles), which seeks to unite the many mutually-detesting splinters of the French anarchist, ecological and anti-capitalist left.

It has two main gurus (don’t say leaders). The first is François Ruffin, 40, a journalist and filmmaker, who released this spring a funny and effective anti-capitalist documentary, Merci Patron, which has been packing cinemas across France. The second is Frédéric Lordon, 54, an economist, little known outside France but one of the few intellectuals who has a genuine following among French leftist youth.

The spark for the Nuit Debout movement was, Mr Lordon says, the attempts by President François Hollande’s reformist (ie “capitalist sell-out”) centre-left government to reform the rigid rules on hiring and firing in France. The labour law reform (now much watered down) was, Mr Lordon says, “that little something or other… which accelerated what had already been blowing in the wind for a long time”.

If you spend a night chez les Nuitdeboutistes, it is immediately clear that leftist views prevail. Anyone who deviates during a “general meeting” is booed and jeered or given the “crossed arms” signal which means “we profoundly disagree”.

Mr Finkielkraut is nearly correct when he says that Nuit Debout is a “revolutionary love-in bubble in the centre of a completely indifferent city”. He is right when he says that parts of the mainstream French media have over-sold the movement as a romantic, broad-based, open-minded citizens’ revolt against the corruption and power of the few.

And yet and yet.

The movement is still growing – growing slowly, but growing. It surfs on the same wave of broad anger that sustains Corbynism in Britain, the Sanders surge in the United States and the Podemos movement in Spain. If you speak to the fringe deboutistes – those who come out curiosity rather than commitment – they complain about flailing governments, arrogant banks, austerity, offshore accounts, unemployment, low wages for the many and astronomical pay for the few.

They have no answers to any of these things other than a vague feeling that that “people” should not put up with them any longer.

Where the movement is going is anyone’s guess. The centre-left government has been tactically indulgent, fearing that repression might ignite a 1968-type explosion amongst French youngsters (which seems unlikely). The centre-right and far right opposition are theatrically angry with the government for being so indulgent.

The Nuit Debout movement seems to be growing in size but losing intellectual steam. There are limits to any movement which claims to have no leaders and no demands.

At recent general meetings, there have been calls for a grève general (general strike). More realistically, some nuitdeboutistses wear stickers declaring a rêve genarale (general dream).