By: V4 Agency
Violence against public officials, threats against teachers and attacks on police have become a daily occurence in the country. The head of a kindergarten has recently received a death threat from two parents, and a police car was pelted with stones in a street during the filming of a music video.
Public security is deteriorating in France, where acts of aggression have become a daily occurence. The beheading of Samuel Paty last October has sent shockwaves across the whole world and teachers have been exposed to threats ever since.
The most recent incident took place in the historic town of Mulhouse on the Franco-German border, where two parents mortally threatened the head of a kindergarten in front of the children. According to Le Figaro, the parents became furious when they learned that the director had reported them to the authorities for mistreating their child. Arriving at the kindergarten, the couple began shouting death threats at their child’s teacher. Although both parents were detained, the woman, who was pregnant, was released later. Both of them, however, will be subject to legal proceedings which could result in months of incarceration or a fine of up to 7,500 euros.
Mulhouse Mayor Michèle Lutz also spoke about the incident. He ensured the threatened kindergarten teacher of his full support and stressed that such acts of violence had no place in any of the institutions of the French Republic.
The mayor told the press that some parents simply disrespect the values of the republic, adding that she hoped that the sanctions imposed on them will be proportionate to what happened.
Ghislaine Umhauer, secretary of the SNUipp-FSU teachers’ union, says that within just a few weeks, they have received several reports of teachers attacked by parents, who no longer respect any professional boundaries and question the work and methods of educators.
However, teachers are not the only ones exposed to violence in France, where police officers have also become a more frequent target of attacks. In the town of Pantin, in Seine-Saint-Denis departement near Paris, a group of young people shooting a rap clip hurled stones at a police vehicle when officers wanted to stop and inspect a driver for speeding.
According to Le Figaro, as soon as the officers got out of the car, the youngsters involved in the clip surrounded them and began acting in a threatening manner. The officers swiftly returned to their vehicle, but the recording shows that one of the attackers hit the side of their car with a big stone that he was only able to lift with both hands.
Three weeks ago, two patroling motorcycle officers became the target of a similar attack in the commune of Aulnay-sous-Bois, in Seine-Saint-Denis departement. When stopped for a roadside inspection, the driver told the officers that he would go to a nearby place to fetch his documents. Instead, he returned with his “firends” and together, they attacked the officers. One of them suffered a sprained shoulder, the other had many of his ribs fractured.