The Defender of Rights wonders about the “confrontational” vision of the maintenance of order in France

It is entitled “De-escalation of violence and management of protesting crowds. What (s) articulation (s) in France and in Europe today?” In a study published Monday, November 29, the Defender of Rights scrutinizes the challenges encountered by the police in France, questioning their “confrontational vision”.

This study is the result of analyzes carried out since 2018 by the independent State institution and interviews with police and gendarmes. It then appears that a new national law enforcement plan announced in mid-September by Emmanuel Macron and supposed, among other things, to devote the place and role of journalists during demonstrations is expected.

The document underlines how much the question of maintaining order has become particularly thorny since 2016 and the demonstrations against the labor law, and especially since the movement of “yellow vests” in 2018-2019. The latter was notably punctuated by violence and injuries due to the use of defense ball launchers (LBD) by the police.

The study notes that the police in France seem “strongly marked by a confrontational prism” and inclined to apply the law with a “mainly punitive approach”. It echoes the “developed stress” by the police with “contemporary hyper-media coverage” who “maintains collective mobilization” and incites “the politician to get involved in the conduct of operations” which reduces, according to them, the time of the police response.

In the national law enforcement plan (SNMO), the institution of the Defender of Rights points to a “dichotomy” between the management of “peaceful demonstrations” and that “very reactive even brutal” from “orders” which contrasts with the practices of neighboring countries. According to her, the Belgian approach to policing, “entirely based on the principle of de-escalation”, is a model on a European scale. It revolves around the concepts of dialogue and consultation.