Paris (AFP)

Several thousand people took to the streets on Saturday, particularly at the appeal of journalists' unions against the text penalizing the malicious dissemination of images of the police, adopted the day before by the National Assembly, deemed to be detrimental to "the freedom of expression "and" the rule of law ".

The first and the main of about twenty demonstrations planned in France began at the Trocadéro in Paris in the early afternoon, in the middle of a large police force.

On the black square of people, of which many + yellow vests +, fly flags of the PCF, EELV, FO, NPA, a banner of "Extinction rebellion" and another of Médiapart: "Democracy dies in the 'darkness".

"Darmacron make us insecure," read a sign.

Among the slogans repeated in a loop: "Everyone wants to film the police" and "the street is ours."

The National Assembly voted Friday evening, after having amended it, the most controversial measure of the proposed law "comprehensive security": article 24 penalizing the malicious dissemination of images of the police, while accompanying it with guarantees on the "right to inform".

This article, but also the possible use of drones during demonstrations and the fear of facial recognition by surveillance cameras, aroused intense emotion in the media, which saw it as a risk of obstructing the freedom to inform.

A protester from the Trocadero, Manuel Furtado, is "outraged": "We are told that we must limit our freedoms for the good of all but this is going too far".

"We are falling into something that is not totally democracy", worries another demonstrator, Martine Wattoux, yellow vest on her back.

- "Mouth blurring" -

In Lille, a thousand demonstrators protested earlier behind signs "Even not drone", "Orwell was right", "blurring of mouth".

Another thousand in Rennes, ditto in Montpellier.

Among the slogans: "lower your weapons, we will lower our phones".

A press conference was organized at the same time at the headquarters of the Human Rights League in Paris, in the presence of Amnesty International, representatives of journalists' unions and an official of a minority police union, the CGT -Interior.

"We are worried about the slow decline of the rule of law, which seems to lead to a police state," said Arie Alimi, member of the national office of the League of Human Rights.

In the Figaro, Sylvain Maillard, LREM deputy for Paris, tried to defuse the anger: the text "is not well understood. Obviously we can continue to film anyone and of course the police . "

Journalists' unions believe that there is no need for a new law "to scare", while the penal code and the law on press freedom of 1881 already punish incitement to hatred.

- "Macron, populist in white collar" -

Jean-François Cullafroz, of the CFDT, welcomed the mobilization of the editorial directors of the main media against the controversial article, calling on "our press bosses to take a position" during a meeting scheduled for Tuesday at the ministry of 'Interior.

For Pablo Aiquel of the SNJ-CGT, Emmanuel Macron "is a white-collar populist".

"How are we going to ask Poland and Hungary to respect the rule of law when in France we are doing everything to undermine it?" He asked.

Secretary General at the CGT-Interior, Anthony Caillé, joined the journalists to demand "the total withdrawal" of this law of "social control".

The disputed article penalizes one year in prison and a fine of 45,000 euros for the dissemination of "the image of the face or any other element of identification" of the police in intervention when it "undermines" their "physical or mental integrity".

Social media campaigns in the government's sights

This article 24, which was hailed by the president of the National Assembly, Marine Le Pen, as "going in the right direction", specifies that the measure cannot "prejudice the right to inform".

© 2020 AFP