Dozens of marches against police violence will be held across France on Saturday after French authorities banned commemorative rallies for fear of reigniting the unrest that has swept the country recently.
release:
Seven years after Adama Traoré, a young black man, died in police custody, his sister plans to lead a memorial march in Persins and Beaumont-sur-Oise, north of Paris.
However, tensions remained high after police killed Nahle, 17, of Algerian origin, at a traffic station last week, with a court ruling that the likelihood of public disturbance was too high to allow the march to proceed.
In a video posted on Twitter, Adama’s sister Asa Traore confirmed that “there will be no marches in Beaumont-sur-Oise” in accordance with the court order.
“The government decided to add fuel to the flames” and “disrespected my brother’s death,” she said in the video.
Instead of attending the planned event, she said she would join a rally Saturday afternoon at Place de la République in central Paris to tell “the world that our dead have the right to live even if they die”.
However, this “march for justice” will also be banned, according to Paris police headquarters.
🚨🚨🚨Asa Traore condemns the French government’s ban as insulting and irresponsible. Elle sera at Place de la République in Paris at 15:00.
This is the failure of the democratic world. Personne ne peut nous empêcher d’être libre! 1/2 pic.twitter.com/ybpXoeO5tp— La Vérité Pour Adama (@laveritepradama) July 7, 2023
About 30 similar demonstrations against police violence are planned in France this weekend, including in the cities of Lille, Marseille, Nantes and Strasbourg, according to online maps.
sad and angry
Some trade unions, political parties and associations have called on supporters to join this year’s Traore memorial march, as France is alarmed by allegations of institutionalized racism in its police force following the police shooting of Nahel M Traore.
Traore, 24, died shortly after his arrest in 2016, sparking several nights of unrest with results similar to the week-long unrest that erupted across the country after Nahle was shot at point-blank range in traffic. stop.
The teen’s death on June 27 revived long-running allegations of systemic racism in the security forces, with a U.N. committee calling on France to ban racial profiling.
But the far-right party has linked the country’s most violent and widespread unrest since 2005 to mass immigration and called for restrictions on new arrivals.
Activists said Saturday’s “citizens’ march” would be an opportunity for people to express their “sadness and anger” over discriminatory police policies, especially in working-class neighbourhoods.
They urged reforms to the police, including policing strategy and force arming.
Government spokesman Olivier Villan criticized the groups for holding demonstrations “in major cities that have not yet recovered from the riots”.
Since Nahle’s death, more than 3,700 people have been detained by police over protests, including at least 1,160 minors, according to official figures.
(AFP)