France: Policing, public order
01 January 1991
France: Policing, public order
artdoc July=1994
New central immigration police unit launched
In January, the minister of the interior, Charles Pasqua
launched the `Central Directorate for Immigration Control' under
the directorate of Robert Broussard, one of France's toughest
police chiefs, previously head of anti-terrorist operations
against Corsican nationalists. The role of the department, which
will have jurisdiction over border police, will be to control
immigration and the employment of illegal immigrants. `It will
also have a role to play in the application of the Schengen
accords' says Pasqua, as `the government refuses to allow the
free movement of people to be transformed into the free movement
of crooks, of delinquents and of drugs'. Pasqua has warned that
deportations will increase. `Once we have sent back several
planeloads or boatloads of immigrants' he said `the world will
get the message' (Independent 7.1.94).
The `terrorist' threat
Media welcomes `anti-Islamist' terrorist operations
The French press are proclaiming the success of the state's
operation against both the PKK and the FIS, describing both as
an `Anti-Islamist operation' although Turkish Kurds are not
followers of Islam. According to L'Evenement du Jeudi, the
success of Operation Chrysanthmum against the Algerians led to
Operation Red Roses against the PKK. What is most disturbing is
the article's triumphant tone and the fact that nowhere does it
recognise the oppression of Kurds by the Turkish state. Instead
we are told that nine years of struggle has caused the death of
`500 partisans of the Turkish state' (L'Evenement du Jeudi,
6,12.94).
Arrested Kurds start hunger strike
On 17 December, 17 Kurds arrested during Operation Red Roses
started a hunger strike in Paris. Twenty-four people have been
charged with `criminal conspiracy in relation to a terrorist
enterprise, extortion of funds with violence, and death threats'
(L'Evenement du Jeudi 6,12.1.94).
Arab leader released after police accused of fabricating evidence
An internal police investigation has absolved the police of
planting evidence incriminating Moussa Kraouche, the spokesman
for the organisation of the `Fraternite Algerienne en France',
which is linked to the FIS. In November 1993, the CID in
Versailles, on the instructions of the Central Anti-Terrorist
Squad, raided the apartment of Kraouche (described in Le Figaros
as one of France's most wanted men), seizing three compromising
documents wrapped in a towel. But a panel of experts, acting
on the instructions of the criminal records' office and later a
judge, doubted the authenticity of the documents, concluding that
they could have been planted by the police. Cited in the doubts
of a report by Robert Didier was the fact that one of the texts,
a document from the Group Islamique Armae (GIA), calling for the
assassination of two named collaborators, was written in English,
when Islamists, surely, would communicate in Arabic. Following
the experts' evaluation, the Inspection Generale de la Police
Nationale carried out its own internal investigation which, while
acknowledging that the police made a `material error' with the
documents, concludes that they did not deliberately plant them.
Moussa Kraoche was released from custody on 22 December. His
lawyer has lodged a complaint alleging the use of forgeries and
the abuse of authority (Le Figaro 7,8.1.94).
Update on Nanterre Gypsies
Of the 604 Romany camped at Nanterre given until January to leave
the country (see bulletin no. 7), only 76 have so far agreed to
be voluntarily repatriated to Romania. The others have headed for
large towns like Toulouse. The International Federation of the
League of Human Rights has criticised the decision not to
consider the Romany for political asylum, pointing out that there
is persecution of the Gypsies in Romania (Le Quotidien 8.12.93,
Le Monde 5.1.94).
R