The incidents that marred the final of the Champions League football, organized at the Stade de France, in Saint-Denis (Seine-Saint-Denis), Saturday evening, did not fail to trigger political reactions, Sunday May 29, the oppositions criticizing the government’s ability to organize large demonstrations.
“We are not prepared for events like the Olympic Games or the Rugby World Championship”, scolded Jean-Luc Mélenchon on BFM-TV, Sunday noon. Lamenting a « image lamentable » for France and “a complete failure of police strategy”the meeting between Liverpool and Madrid having started more than half an hour late after several police charges and sixty-eight arrests, the leader of La France insoumise questioned “police employment doctrine”.
Some spectators, despite having tickets on Saturday evening, were only able to access the stadium at the end of the first period. Many supporters tried to climb the gates of the enclosure in an attempt to force entry. Brief scuffles then opposed the police who repelled these intruders, sometimes using tear gas. The Paris police headquarters and then the Ministry of the Interior noted the use of counterfeit banknotes to justify delays at the entrance to the enclosure.
On the side of the presidential majority, Aurore Bergé insisted on “remember the context”. “This final should have been held in Russia” and France organized it “in just three months”pleaded on RMC the deputy La République en Marche. “There were no difficulties in the fan zones”she assured, calling for “look coldly at what happened”so as not to draw erroneous conclusions on the potential organizational weaknesses of the French authorities before the major sporting events to come.
“We are watched by the whole world »
“They were bands of thugs that we know well from this department.t [de Seine-Saint-Denis] out of control in matters of security”said Marine Le Pen on RTL on Sunday, without providing any evidence but citing the “sayings of foreign reporters”. The former president of the National Rally expressed her « sentiment d’humiliation » before commenting: “We are watched by the whole world and all the capitals which have seen this have noted that France was no longer able to organize large demonstrations without them degenerating. »
Also on the far right, Eric Zemmour wrote on Twitter that, according to him, “the scum are completely intoxicated by the general impunity”. “It’s France that has a hangover”judged the former presidential candidate, campaigning for the legislative elections in the 4e constituency of the Var. “It is the usual racist refrain of these people who have only absolute contempt for the population when it does not conform to the idea they have of it”replied Jean-Luc Mélenchon on BFM-TV.
“A bit quick and cowardly to throw the problem on the British fans alone”reacted, for his part, the deputy of the Alpes-Maritimes of the Republicans, Eric Ciotti, specialist in the maintenance of order, on Twitter. “Full light must be shed on those responsible for this violence”he said, in the same line as the UK’s ambassador to France, Menna Rawlings, who welcomed UEFA’s commitment to investigate: “The facts must be established”, commented the diplomat on Twitter a few hours after the meeting.