Council of Europe warned of violence in France

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On Thursday evening, protests against pension reform in France escalated sharply. There were 457 arrests, 440 guards injured and about 900 fires in Paris alone.

The Council of Europe was alarmed by the sometimes violent clashes between police and demonstrators. Freedom of expression and freedom of assembly must be protected against all forms of violence, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovi, 58, said in Strasbourg on Friday.

Authorities must protect peaceful protesters and journalists reporting on the protest from violence by police officers or other people, it said. The Council of Europe, based in Strasbourg, France, is responsible for protecting human rights. It is not a body of the European Union.

Mijatovi noted that the protesters had also acted violently against the police. “But sporadic acts of violence by some protesters or other reprehensible acts by others during a demonstration cannot justify the excessive use of force by government authorities.”

Previously, the protests had been peaceful for weeks

The protests are against the gradual increase of the retirement age from 62 to 64, which has now been adopted, and the actions of the center government under President Macron.

The days of strikes and protests were largely peaceful for weeks. But since the government pushed the controversial reform through the National Assembly without a vote last week, violence has been on the rise – especially during spontaneous protests. Protesters, for their part, accused the police of violence.

“Personally, often under the influence of fatigue, police and gendarmes may commit acts that are inconsistent with what they have been taught in training and with a view to professional ethics,” said French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin (40) please. Friday. (SDA)

Source: Blick