The most controversial section of the Global Security Bill – Article 24 – which was approved by legislators on Friday, prohibits the publication of images that are intended to harm the identity of a law enforcement officer “with intent to cause physical or mental harm.”
A bill to be amended by the government to ensure freedom of the press – subject to much criticism and opposition.
Now that the bill has been passed by the National Assembly, it will lead to the Senate in December.
In a statement before Tuesday’s vote, Prime Minister Jean-Claude Stacey’s office said the new law “should not be biased in informing the public of the legitimate interests of the people.”
But the amendment was not enough for the year-long Lear Hayden, a senior journalist appointed by France as a human rights defender.
Speaking on French television after the vote on Article 24, Head called the amendment a step in the right direction but warned that “the possibility of punishing anyone who uses it illegally in our legislative arsenal already exists. The videos they publish . ”
On Saturday, an estimated 22,000 people took part in a march in France to protest the bill. Crowds in Paris were accompanied by media representatives as well as some Gillets Junes (Yellow West) opponents and members of the extinct Rebellion.
‘Anxious to send’
Overall, the Global Security Bill will increase the capacity of police forces to protect civilians without the consent of civilians through drones and drones, while banning the release of photos or videos of police officers’ faces.
Amnesty International says that if the bill becomes law in its current form, France – the world’s first country to declare the concept of universal human rights – will be an exception to democracy.
Cecil Cdrew, president of Amnesty International France, said: “If people can’t film anything anywhere on the road, sending a message to the police that they sometimes have to use force illegally is a very worrying message.”
“On the one hand, citizens are being told to accept the possibility of being filmed under the pretext that they have no excuse to fear if they have done nothing wrong. And at the same time, the police have refused to film, which is a right in every democracy. In the world. ”
Defenders of the bill say it was necessary after police officers were singled out and tortured on social media, which they called during protests in 2018 and 2019. They also say that nothing in the bill will stop journalists from doing their job, as the need to take action will depend on show “intent to harm”.
But without Borders, Borders says the provision is too vague. “Intention is a concept that is open to interpretation and difficult to determine,” the organization said in a statement.
The group said, “Any police or video that shows identifiable police officers that are disseminated through broadcast or critical media or with critical comments is an attempt to harm these police officers themselves.” ”
In parliament, the bill is being pushed by two legislators from President Emmanuel Macron’s La Repubblica and March party. One of them, Jean-Michel Fouvergu, the former head of the police counter-terrorism unit, told parliament this week: “Article 24 is intended to ban malicious and dangerous individuals from contacting and harassing them on social networks. No worries. But will be able to do their job. “
Bill’s other co-sponsor, Alice Thorotte, told CNN. “Broadcasting and capturing images, whether on camera or by citizens on the phone, of police personnel revealing with their faces will still be possible. What will change is that any images of inciting violence or hatred with such images will be allowed by law.” ”
Police bat and tear gas
And there are fears that the proposed legislation during the protests has already excited the police.
Last Tuesday, as protesters began marching inside the National Assembly, protesters marched on the building in protest of Article 24. Thirty protesters were taken in for questioning, mainly on the grounds that they had failed to disperse when ordered by police.
One of them was a French television journalist who was detained overnight before being released without charge the following afternoon. France Television, the country’s main public broadcaster, released a statement calling for the “arrest of the journalist who arrested him in a derogatory and arbitrary manner.”
At a press conference on Wednesday, French Interior Minister Gerald Dermanin was asked about police responses to the protest, and a video of a journalist claiming he would show his presscard even though police threatened to arrest him.
“The journalist did not reach out to police before protesting – as some of his colleagues did – to allow him to cover.” Journalists are not required to seek police permission before covering anything protesters in French law.
On Monday night, the interior minister himself responded after breaking up a migration camp in Paris, saying some of the pictures were shocking.
Images and videos posted online showed police chasing people on the streets and attacking journalists with both bat and tear gas. Darmani tweeted that he had asked for a detailed report on the incident, adding: “I will make a decision as soon as I receive it.”
Outbursts of hatred
But in addition to the work of journalists, there are also fears about what the bill means to members of the public and what they capture on their phones.
Kudriou explains, “Recently there have been a number of cases of police brutality in France that have now been exposed by various factors that will now become illegal. After Amnesty International has verified their rituals, this video has been used a lot. It shows that some police brutality can happen despite a consistent strategy of denial. ”
Cedric Chauviat, a five-year-old father of five North African heirs, died shortly after being stopped by police near the Eiffel Tower earlier this year. During the stop, filmed by several passing motorists, Chauviat was knocked down by three police officers; He died at the hospital two days later, and his autopsy revealed a broken throat, according to the prosecutor in the case.
Several months later and after an initial denial of any disqualification from the police, a criminal investigation into the actions of the officers involved in the amateur footage began. The three officers now face murder charges. It all denies any malpractice
“He would be saying, after George Floyd, we are not going to allow police shootings,” says David Dufresne, who in his latest film about police brutality, “the monopoly of violence,” simply could not have happened if the Global Security Bill had been enacted.
“We have a similar case in France: Cedric Chauviat,” Dufresne told CNN. “People who pass by and see that there is a police investigation looks like it went badly. None of them know what happens next which is the death of this guy. When they start shooting the film, because they Understand that they need it. ”
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