The announcements Monday of the Minister of the Interior Christophe Castaner, whose abandonment of the method of arrest known as of "the strangulation", to improve the deontology of the police forces leave the police unions "dubious". "We are skeptical about all of the minister's declarations and especially about the elimination of the strangulation technique," said the national delegate of the Union of Peacekeepers, Alliance, Frédéric Lagache.
"We will be reduced to street fighting"
"As soon as it is done in a short instant, it is the only technique that allows agents to control an individual whose weight is greater", observes Frédéric Lagache. "Otherwise, we will be reduced to street fighting or the use of taser," he said.
Yves Lefebvre, secretary general of the Unity-SGP-Police union, also wonders: "If someone refuses to be arrested and if we no longer have the bottleneck, what do we do ? " "The minister should have informed us before. If Thursday [date of the meeting between Christophe Castaner and the unions in Beauvau], we are told that it is replaced by a better intervention technique, we will be takers. But it will take months or even years before everyone is trained, "says Yves Lefebvre.
"We are used as a variable in the face of public opinion"
"There are political announcements and the reality on the ground. It seems that we live in a world of bisounours where everyone is nice except the police who are mean," taunts the secretary general of Unsa -Police, Philippe Capon.
During a press conference intended to respond to recurrent complaints from the police for racism or violence, Christophe Castaner announced in particular the abandonment of "the method of taking by the neck, called strangulation ", following the Chouviat affair, a delivery man died in Paris, in January 2020, during his arrest.
More generally, Yves Lefebvre would have liked "that Christophe Castaner reaffirms that the vast majority of police officers are not racist and are Republicans". "I have the impression that we are used as a variable in the face of public opinion."
"The police officer has the right to the presumption of innocence"
"All the announcements are not contestable, in particular those taking part in the fight against racism, but one has the feeling to be expiatory victims. One feels a feverishness of the policy", remarks for his part Patrice Ribeiro, secretary general of Synergies-Officers union.
Frédéric Lagache is also concerned about the minister's comments on the suspensions of agents in the event of proven "suspicions of racism". "Either it is proven, or it is a suspicion. But in any case, the police officer has the right to the presumption of innocence like everyone else. We must wait for the end of the investigation before suspending. is not sub-citizens ".