Are we seriously trying to compare what is happening in Honk Kong (and rest of China, that doesn't appear on TV), with the almost infinite patience that the french police shows, with the permanent protests in France about anything they feel like protesting violently against that particular week?
I still remember French setting fire to dozens of cars in several different protests, while the police was too afraid to intervene, or be accused of curtailing those "peaceful" citizens rights to express themselves as they see fit.
Well, not that much, the protests in question could probably be far more peaceful if the CRS had a a lighter hand on the tear gas grenades, the flash ball guns, the sticks and everything.
Just to illustrate, the last year protests saw the reappearance of the "Voltigeurs" (cops on motorcycles with sticks and flash ball guns), these units were disbanded in the 80ies after the death of a student.
And the casualties list is pretty significant, 2 deaths, several hundreds injured (including a few lost eyes and hands).
Are these protests borderline riots? yes. But the Police response is also quite bad. I'm personally wondering if it's a conscientious political decision to have an heavy hand to breed violence in order to then 1) discourage other people from protesting 2) discredit a movement.
Granted, France is not yet at the level of China, we don't see opponents to Macron being jailed or disappearing (even if some developments are quite worrisome).
The State has a legitimacy for violence through its police and military forces that individual citizen don't have, and that's a good thing. But it also mean that the State must be extremely cautious about its use of violence to keep a moral high ground, specially in the context of a Democracy.
Lastly, History is generally not very kind on violent repression of protests and riots, even when at the time, the vast majority agreed with said repression.
Well, not that much, the protests in question could probably be far more peaceful if the CRS had a a lighter hand on the tear gas grenades, the flash ball guns, the sticks and everything.
Just to illustrate, the last year protests saw the reappearance of the "Voltigeurs" (cops on motorcycles with sticks and flash ball guns), these units were disbanded in the 80ies after the death of a student.
And the casualties list is pretty significant, 2 deaths, several hundreds injured (including a few lost eyes and hands).
Are these protests borderline riots? yes. But the Police response is also quite bad. I'm personally wondering if it's a conscientious political decision to have an heavy hand to breed violence in order to then 1) discourage other people from protesting 2) discredit a movement.
Granted, France is not yet at the level of China, we don't see opponents to Macron being jailed or disappearing (even if some developments are quite worrisome).
The State has a legitimacy for violence through its police and military forces that individual citizen don't have, and that's a good thing. But it also mean that the State must be extremely cautious about its use of violence to keep a moral high ground, specially in the context of a Democracy.
Lastly, History is generally not very kind on violent repression of protests and riots, even when at the time, the vast majority agreed with said repression.