The Head of State spoke in a brief press release and had a wreath laid during a ceremony on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of this demonstration for peace in Algeria, which had killed nine people.
Article written by
Posted
Update
Reading time : 1 min.
He is the first Head of State to pay such a tribute. Emmanuel Macron saluted, Tuesday, February 8, the memory of the nine people who died in the Charonne metro, in Paris, during a demonstration for peace in Algeria on February 8, 1962. This demonstration was at the time organized by the parties of left, in particular the French Communist Party, then violently repressed by the police under the authority of the prefect Maurice Papon.
In a brief press release, Emmanuel Macron declares that “On February 8, 1962, a united demonstration was organized in Paris for peace and independence in Algeria and against the attacks of the OAS. It was violently repressed by the police: nine people lost their lives, several hundred were injured.” “Sixty years after this tragedy, I pay tribute to the memory of the victims and their families”he adds.
In addition, the prefect of police of Paris, Didier Lallement, laid a wreath in the name of the President of the Republic on Tuesday, during a ceremony at the Père Lachaise cemetery, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the demonstration. This long-awaited tribute “is part of a global process of recognition of all the memories linked to the Algerian war and which aims to build this common memory”, specifies the entourage of the Head of State. Since his accession to power in 2017, Emmanuel Macron has multiplied memorial gestures in an attempt to “reconcile memories” between French and Algerians, but without “repentance”.