They might be lampooned as a bunch of truncheon-happy meatheads by leftwing street demonstrators, but that doesn't mean French riot police don't appreciate a nice glass of Burgundy with their lunch.
The notorious Compagnies Républicaines de Sécurité, or CRS, are outraged at an official decree stating they can no longer drink wine or beer with their meals.
Until now, a civilised tipple was part of the daily lunch menu of the controversial force, lauded by Nicolas Sarkozy, whose trademark black body armour and riot shields are a regular feature on French streets.
A glass of wine, beer or cider – but not spirits – was always permitted with lunch, including while on duty. Even packed lunches provided out of riot vans while they were patrolling demonstrations came with a can of beer or glass of wine.
But in October last year, authorities were annoyed when pictures published on the website Bakchich showed uniformed riot police swigging beer from cans on the sidelines of a sixth-formers' street-protest against pension reforms in Perreux-sur-Marne, north of Paris. The website reported that having told locals it was too dangerous to go outside during the high-school demo, uniformed officers stopped for a beer on a street corner in full view of the public.
Police unions expressed their fury at the new decree. Paul Le Guennec, of the biggest riot police union, Unité Police SGP-FO, said the French public had not seemed shocked at the notion of a CRS officer drinking at lunch.
"Does the fact that having a glass of wine while eating prevent any kind of worker from carrying out their job? I don't think the chief of police drinks water when he's having a meal," Le Guennec told the paper Le JDD.
The union argued that the CRS did not have a higher incidence of alcohol problems than the rest of society, saying a small drink with lunch was in line with French labour law.
But unions warned that the row over lunchtime drinking should not be allowed to detract from their protests over cuts to the 14,000-strong force. Earlier this year, there was unprecedented strike action and protests by riot police over cuts to barracks and staff, with some CRS in Marseille going on hunger strike in an embarrassment to the security-minded Sarkozy.
Article courtesy of Guardian Unlimited and www.policeoracle.com
1 comment:
Well, of course it does seem extreme to us because we just don't do that and never have, but if thats what they have been doing all their working lives it does seem extreme to stop it now.
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