November 28, 2007

Sarkozy To Paris Rioters: My Patience Is At An End

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has a track record for dealing harshly with rioters, and he issued a warning to those stoking the latest round of antisocial violence. France will not approach these people as political activists, but as murderers who simply haven't yet found success:

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has vowed to bring to justice rioters who shot at police in Paris in urban unrest that followed the death of two youths.

Mr Sarkozy, visiting policemen injured in the riots, said such shootings could not be tolerated. ...

Mr Sarkozy touched down from a state visit to China on Wednesday morning and headed straight to a hospital in Eaubonne, northern Paris, to visit some of the 120 officers injured in the rioting.

Afterwards he said: "Opening fire at officials is completely unacceptable... [this] has a name - attempted murder... Those who take it into their hands to shoot at officials will find themselves in court. It is not something that we can tolerate, no matter how dramatic the deaths of these two youngsters on a motorbike may be."

Part of the problem stems from the strange tolerance that the French have for riots in the first place. If they accept the burning of dozens of cars a night, then that becomes a baseline for later protests; anything that happens created an imperative for escalation. In this case, the attacks have targeted the police for their supposed role in the death of two Muslim teenagers who drove recklessly on a moped, without helmets.

If Sarkozy wants an end to these kinds of riots, then he needs to emulate Rudy Giuliani in a zero-tolerance enforcement strategy. He needs more police on the streets of the banlieus, arresting people who flout the law. It will take a while for the point to get made, and it will likely provoke a rise in short-term violence. Re-establishing law and order is a must, thought, if Sarkozy wants to protect policemen and the French citizenry in the long term.

Unlike previous French administrations, Sarkozy has the will to act on this if he chooses. If he can regain control of these areas and end the perpetual pity-party riots, Sarkozy will establish that French law rules in France, and not the car-burners.

UPDATE: In a clear case of coffee-less blogging, I inexplicably wrote "flaunt the law" when I meant "flout". The image of rioters throwing flaming legal textbooks is rather amusing, but not at all what I had in mind. Thanks to Bobby in the comments for the correction.

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