Council of Europe criticizes excessive police force at protests in France

(Patria) - The Council of Europe has criticized the "excessive use of force" by French police during demonstrations against unpopular pension reform, AFP reported.

"There have been violent incidents, including those directed at law enforcement officers," said Human Rights Commissioner Dunja Mijatović.

Sporadic acts of violence by some demonstrators or other reprehensible acts committed by other individuals during protests cannot justify the excessive use of force by state officials. These acts are also not sufficient to deny peaceful demonstrators the right to freedom of assembly, she added.

"It is up to the authorities to allow the real exercise of these freedoms by protecting peaceful demonstrators and journalists covering these protests from police brutality and against violent individuals acting within or on the margins of the marches," Mijatović said.

Human rights groups, judges, and left-wing politicians have raised alarms in recent days over what they described as arbitrary arrests and apparent mistreatment by police during protests against President Emmanuel Macron's plan to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64.

Anger has boiled over on the streets since his government invoked controversial executive powers last week to push the bill through without a parliamentary vote. Police have arrested hundreds of people as they try to disperse daily protests in Paris and other cities, but rights advocates say they have released the vast majority without charge.

Amnesty International has raised the alarm over the "widespread use of excessive force and arbitrary arrests."

Reporters Without Borders said police attacked several journalists who were "clearly identifiable." But security officials defended their actions, saying they were responding to violent rioters and anarchist groups that often infiltrate French demonstrations to provoke clashes.