“It’s not good for the image of law enforcement. It’s not good for the image of our country”estimated Monday, May 30 on franceinfo Emmanuel Grégoire, first deputy mayor of Paris, after the final of the Champions League football marked by scenes of violence near the Stade de France in Saint-Denis on Saturday. “It’s worrying” but “we must not dramatize”tempers Emmanuel Grégoire who wants “take the time for an investigation to understand exactly what happened” before judging. He also points out that the Liverpool supporters present in the Cours de Vincennes fan-zone on Saturday “Breaked the reputation of being hooligans. They watched the game very quietly.”
franceinfo: What happened at the Stade de France worries you before the Rugby World Cup and the Olympic Games?
Emmanuel Gregoire: It is worrying. You shouldn’t dramatize either. The Stade de France has hosted thousands of events for 80,000 people without a problem. So very special things happened. I believe that we must take the time to investigate and understand what happened to ensure that it never happens again.
Why doesn’t anyone seem to want to take their share of the blame?
It’s rare that people rush to the front to say, it’s my fault. The reality is that it’s probably complex and multifactorial. Clearly there have been both flow issues in management. There is the problem of the RER strike which has somewhat disrupted the usual modes of access to the Stade de France. There is the problem of counterfeit banknotes which remains to be documented, but the analyzes which have been delivered by the Minister of the Interior must be taken into account. What is certain is that these risks are known and occur on other occasions. And even when they exist and materialize, we cannot find ourselves in unpleasant situations for the quality of the organized event.
You managed the reception of Liverpool supporters on Saturday with a dedicated space in the east of the capital, Cours de Vincennes. Have there been any incidents there?
No. And Liverpool supporters have belied the reputation that can sometimes stick to their skin of being hooligans and people without clothes. The reality is that it went well. But there was no incident. There were 44,000 people which was the maximum gauge of the fan-zone. There have been a few close incidents, but absolutely nothing to compare with events gathering so many people where there are always a few incidents. They behaved well. There was no damage in the public space, except for dirt and lack of cleanliness.
“I don’t think we should point the finger at the Liverpool supporters, who in this case behaved rather well overall, including in the moments of tension around the Stade de France.”
Emmanuel Grégoire, first deputy mayor of Parisat franceinfo
Did these people stay at the Cours de Vincennes to follow the match?
They stayed there. Doors opened at 2 p.m. And at 3:30 p.m. it was already starting to be 80% full. It reached saturation fairly quickly and they watched the match very calmly. We were all a little worried about what was going to happen next, especially with the defeat to Liverpool. The reality is that they dispersed rather quietly. The police did it smartly with the supporters. Everything went very well during Vincennes. It’s a shame that the situation was not the same at the Stade de France.
What are the responsibilities?
Today, we can see that everyone is trying to pass the buck. In the multiple causes of the dysfunctions, it is necessary to see what is the real part which has been taken by each of these factors. Counterfeit notes, incidents, some incivilities, even attacks, were mentioned. The flow management, in my opinion, was quite lacking.
To have physically witnessed the areas of congestion, you have thousands of supporters who are on the right blocked by the enclosure wall of the Stade de France, on the left by the A1 motorway, in front by mobile gendarmes and behind by hundreds and thousands of supporters arriving, this creates compact crowd phenomena.
“It is extremely difficult to manage these large crowds. What is certain is that it is not good for the image of law enforcement or for the image of our country.”
Emmanuel Grégoire, first deputy mayor of Parisat franceinfo
It will also be necessary to do a feedback on what happened, on the way in which we manage crowds, which can only pass by the tear gas canister when there is a little movement. But I think we should avoid giving lessons too quickly.