As police protests against the imprisonment of one of their own spread across France, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin attempted to calm the situation by meeting with the police unions, saying he was sympathetic to their demands.
The minister met with the police unions on the evening of Thursday, July 27th. The meeting was eagerly awaited by both sides, following the announcement that a police officer from the Marseille Brigade Anti-Criminalité (BAC) had been taken into custody on charges of serious violence against a 22-year-old young man during the wave of riots at the end of June.
On the whole, the police officers said they were “satisfied” with the discussions they had with their minister, who “listened carefully” and “promised to look into the issue of remanded prisoners.” Grégory Joron, from the Unité SGP Police-FO union, welcomed the fact that the minister supported the controversial comments made by the director general of the national police force a few days earlier. “He is in the same frame of mind as we are,” he explained in a radio interview on RMC.
During the meeting, Gérald Darmanin adopted the language already used by Frédéric Veaux, director general of the national police force, speaking of a “chain of events” that was difficult for police officers to cope with, creating a tense context that could explain, if not excuse, their actions. He also undertook to study several suggestions put forward by police officers to improve their status, in particular regarding the ‘functional protection’ (i.e., specific protection linked to their profession, which exposes them to multiple assaults) that officers are supposed to benefit from and which is not currently working. The police officers also asked for those suspected of police violence to be tried by specialist magistrates, and Darmanin said he was open to this idea.
Just before the meeting, Gérald Darmanin had visited a police station in the 19th arrondissement of Paris to show his support for the police officers, who have been severely abused in recent days and subjected to what the minister called a veritable “media trial.” On Wednesday, July 26th, a video of young Hedi, whose injuries led to the arrest of the Marseille police officer, was released on social media, showing him in a very weakened state. Part of his skull had to be removed during the operation to save him, and his lawyer has indicated that he is likely to lose the use of his left eye. The controversy has been raging ever since: was he as innocent as he claims to have been when the police set upon him? Even if he was an active participant in the riots, was such an outburst of violence against him justified?
In this battle of images, the minister of the interior chose to resolutely support the forces of law and order. “Today, they are upset, angry, and sad. I want to assure them of my full support, and that the vast majority of the population is behind them,” Darmanin declared during his visit to the police station. Polls published in the wake of the riots show that the French still have massive confidence in the police force.
