Hundreds defy protest ban in Paris, hold march for Black man who died in police custody

According to reports, hundredsdefied a police ban,on Saturday (July 8) to holda march against violence by the country’s police which was supposed to take place in central Paris to honour the 24-year-old Black man who died in police custody in 2016. This comes days after France was rocked by six nights of riots and unrest over the killing of a 17-year-old teenager by a police officer at a traffic stop.

Why did the Frenchofficials ban Paris march?

A report by Reuters saidthat hundreds of protesters defied the ban on a marchforAdama Traore. The decision to ban the planned protest called by the victim Traore’s family on Saturday in central Paris’ Place de la Republique was announced by the French capital city’s police department which cited risks to public order and “context of tensions”.

Subsequently,the crowd gathered atPlace de la Republique was dispersed by the police and seen marching towardsBoulevard Magenta instead, where several hundred people were reportedly marching peacefully.

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This comes after the initial march was to take place in Beaumont-sur-Oise, another Paris suburb, where Traore died in 2016. The ban was upheld by a French court, on Friday, which prompted the organisers to change the location of the march to central Paris instead.

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Traore’s older sister, Assa Traore, after Friday’s court decision took to Twitter and confirmed the change of location and said, “The government has decided to add fuel to the fire (and) not to respect the death of my little brother.”

The head of the Paris police, Laurent Nuñez, said that the march would “likely to attract radical elements with a view to committing acts of violence; the reasons which led the prefect of Val-d’Oise to ban the gathering.”

The circumstances under which the 24-year-old Black Frenchman died in police custody were similar to the killing of George Floyd in the United States. The march was to take place in memory of Traore who his family allege was pinned to the ground by officers and died of asphyxiation.

France reels from riots

The timing of the recent march has seemingly raised alarm among French authorities as the country is still reeling from the six nights of unrest and violent riots which broke out on June 27 after a police officer allegedly fatally shot a 17-year-old at a traffic stop near Paris.

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The death of the teenager of North African descent, Nahel M., renewed long-standing complaints of discrimination, police violence and systemic racism among law enforcement in France. According to recent reports, the 17-year-old was driving a sports car without a licence in a Paris suburb. The policeman accused, according to prosecutors, acknowledged firing a lethal shot at Nahel, and is currently under formal investigation for voluntary homicide.

However, the officer’s lawyer reportedly said that the shot was aimed at the driver’s leg but was bumped when the car drove off, leading him to shoot towards his chest but did not intend to kill the teenager.

Over the six days of unrest and riots across multiple cities in France, more than 3,700 protesters were arrested, including at least 1,160 minors, after they lit thousands of cars on fire, attacked schools, town halls, police stations, banks and businesses, and set nearly a thousand buildings.

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The largest employer federation in France, Medef, said the cost of the riots would be more than $1.1 billion after around 200 businesses were looted, and 300 bank branches and 250 tobacco stores were destroyed. The estimate does not include the damage to schools, town halls or community centres.

Fresh protests planned across France

According to reports, at least 30 similar demonstrations and protests have been planned across France over the weekend, including the cities of Lille, Marseille, Nantes and Strasbourg.

France calls UN remarks on racial profiling ‘excessive’

French authorities and politicians including President Emmanuel Macron have long denied institutional racism in the country’s law enforcement agencies.

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The recent protests also prompted the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), a body of 18 independent experts, to release a statement on Friday, and said that France should make it a priority to address “the structural and systemic causes of racial discrimination, including in law enforcement”.

However, the French foreign ministry, on Saturday said that the remarks made by the UN committee are “excessive” and “unfounded,” adding that “Any ethnic profiling by law enforcement is banned in France…the struggle against excesses in racial profiling has intensified.”

(With inputs from agencies)

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