The LDH targeted by a new criticism from the government. Elisabeth Borne said this Wednesday in the Senate that she no longer understood some of the positions of the League for Human Rights. “I have a lot of respect for what the LDH has embodied. I no longer understand some of his positions,” the Prime Minister told the Senate. “This misunderstanding (…) emerged in its ambiguities in the face of radical Islamism. And it has been consolidated for a few months, ”she added.
Founded in 1898 in particular in defense of Captain Alfred Dreyfus, the association has deployed citizen observers in recent weeks during demonstrations against the pension reform or the mega-basins of Sainte-Soline (Deux-Sèvres) to, among other things, document the device law enforcement and clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement.
A reduction in the grant from the association dismissed
The head of government also recalled that the LDH had recently “attacked a decree prohibiting the transport of weapons by destination to Sainte-Soline”.
Élisabeth Borne assured that there was “no question of lowering the subsidy of this or that” association in principle, wishing “like all members of the government, that the associations supporting human rights continue their action of lookout, moreover largely financed by the State and the communities”. Before continuing: “But dialogue with associations on their actions is also a responsibility, when it comes to public funding”.
“Demonstrating is a fundamental right, it is not by excusing violence that we defend it, on the contrary”, underlined Ms. Borne. “He must be able to practice in safety”. “So we will continue to act to protect this right to protect the demonstrators, to protect the French”, she argued, paying “homage” to the police and gendarmes who ensure “Republican order”.
An appeal and a petition launched
On April 5, Gérald Darmanin hinted before the Senate Law Commission that the subsidies granted to the LDH, an association very critical of the attitude of the police, could be discussed again. “I don’t know about the subsidy given by the state to the Human Rights League. But it deserves to be looked at in the context of the actions that have been carried out”, had judged the Minister of the Interior.
The president of the LDH had declared himself “stunned” to Release following these statements by the Minister of the Interior. The association also tweeted in response to Gérald Darmanin’s comments: ” Actions that have been taken by the LDH for more than 120 years are the defense of the rights and freedoms of all, whether you like it or not, in particular the defense of the freedom to demonstrate undermined by your policing policy. »
This Wednesday, nearly 1,000 public and political figures, such as footballer Éric Cantona, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, Sandrine Rousseau or even Renaissance MP and former minister Barbara Pompili, signed an online petition published by the newspaper Humanity. Entitled “We do not touch the League of Human Rights! she garnered nearly 5,000 additional signatures after it went live, according to the newspaper. The association has also received several tens of thousands of euros in donations.