the Defender of Rights warns of preventive arrests during mobilizations

Caution. While the evenings of demonstration against the adoption of the pension reform follow one another in Paris and in the big cities, the Defender of the rights alerted Tuesday March 21 on the consequences of preventive arrests of people near the demonstrations. This practice can lead “a risk of disproportionately resorting to custodial measures and fostering tensions”says Claire Hédon in a press release.

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She said to herself “concerned by the videos circulating on social networks, numerous articles (…), testimonies and referrals received by the institution on possible ethical breaches in the maintenance of order during the events of the last few days”. Claire Hédon emphasizes “that compliance with the rules of ethics is essential to ease tensions and promote trust between the police and the population”. The sixth night of mobilization generated 81 arrests and 109 verbalizations in Paris.

According to the latest consolidated report from the Paris prosecutor’s office, 425 people were taken into police custody during the first three evenings of spontaneous demonstrations, from Thursday to Saturday, and only 52 were prosecuted at the end. On franceinfo, Laurent Nunez, the prefect of police, denied the existence of preventive arrests. “These are groups of individuals who were arrested, either on the basis of the formation of a group with a view to committing violence, or because they were groups of arsonists”he assured.