Freedom of assembly

According to representatives met during the mission, the entry into force of the law on “the maintenance and reinforcement of public order during demonstrations” in April 2019 has led to a deterioration in the otherwise solid legal protection of the right to demonstrate in France.

Before this law was published, the Constitutional Council removed a provision that would have allowed Prefects to issue preventive administrative bans on demonstrating (interdiction administrative de manifester).

CSOs criticised of the fact that the right to demonstrate was being curtailed through a large number of disproportionate and unjustified arrests, and through the use of excessive force by security forces. CSOs also mentioned the abuse of custody (“garde à vue”) as a means of neutralising activists – notably environmental activists – and preventing them from taking part in protests. They lamented that complaints brought against the police had not led to consequences.

These legal developments have taken place in the context of an evolution in the social dynamic of demonstrations in France, through the waves of “yellow vests” protests. These demonstrations have been spontaneously convened through social media by a number of loosely coordinated organisers, in multiple places at the same time and on a recurring – weekly – basis over several months. Participants explained that these originally peaceful demonstrations had been infiltrated by well-organised rioters who had systematically sought to give the protests a violent turn. Some participants mentioned that disproportionate use of force by the police predated the “yellow vests” demonstrations and that it had been used during authorised events that had been well supervised by their organisers.

The police has had to face an increasingly challenging environment in a situation of shortages of staff, resources and training, which has strongly affected staff morale. The representatives from the police trade union met during the mission claimed that the use of LBD-40s (Lanceur de Balle de Défense/Defensive Ball Launchers) – an intermediate force non-lethal weapon– was the only way they had of protecting themselves during demonstrations marked by a radicalisation of the yellow vests movement and infiltration by violent fringes (“black blocs”).

Numerous stakeholders at national and international level have demanded that the use of LBD- 40s be suspended. CSOs met during the mission denounced the fact that their use has resulted in a high number of people being injured and mutilated. The French authorities have however so far refused to suspend their use of LBD-40s, remaining the only EU country to do so.

The French authorities denied the existence of genuine abuses by the police forces, attributing the high number of detentions, accidents and injured people to the unprecedented number of demonstrations that have taken place since November 2018, as well as to the presence of rioters among the demonstrators. The authorities also assured the delegation that the police used force only in the event of violence by or between demonstrators, and that its use was progressive and proportionate, as stated by the State Council (Conseil d’Etat) consulted on this matter. The authorities are looking into other ways to keep demonstrations safe and secure, if possible avoiding direct contact between police and demonstrators.