A 14-year-old boy was handcuffed by police at a school in a Paris suburb, accused of making threats against a transgender student. Educational staff protested on site, while the government is committed to fighting “the scourge of harassment”.
The controversial arrest, in the middle of class, of a high school student suspected of having harassed a transsexual student in Alfortville (Val-de-Marne) was carried out “in accordance with the law”, declared Wednesday the French government, which affirmed send “very strong messages” to harassers.
The arrest of the 14-year-old schoolboy on Monday continued to spark controversy on Wednesday around the school, and in the educational environment in general, with some emphasizing the need for an “electroshock” to combat harassment, and others consider it “abnormal” to arrest a minor in front of his class.
“This was done with the agreement of the prosecutor” and the “educational team,” said the government spokesperson. “This is how we are going to confront the scourge of harassment, this is how we are going to protect our children, by sending these strong messages,” insisted Olivier Véran.
On the other hand, a police source told the AFP agency that the police had “intervened with the agreement of the prosecutor and the teaching team” and that the arrest “had been carried out taking into account the nature of the extremely serious threats which weighed on him. “They required urgent arrest.”
The student, who attended another school, was allegedly threatened with phrases such as “we’re going to slit your throat” and “I hate your race, fuck you, go die, kill yourself, you disgusting faggot, transsexual ”, according to this source. source.
On site, the students and parents interviewed by AFP did not understand why the boy had been detained in this way, and not outside the school or elsewhere.
“It doesn’t seem very appropriate,” said Lamia H., 39, a Parisian public transport agent and mother of a student. “He is still a teenager, he is a minor. “It’s definitely not normal,” he said, adding that “even though I don’t agree with the facts” of the harassment.
Shock
The young people who presented themselves as accompanying the detainee were moved.
“For me, it was impossible for the police to enter the classroom,” confides a 14-year-old girl. He insists the arrest happened without physical violence, but it “shocked” the class.
“The manager knocked on the door and told us an arrest was being made. Police officers arrived, grabbed his arm” and “handcuffed him, explaining the charges against him,” he said. “We were shocked and laughed nervously.”
Anonymously, another student said the teacher himself “was shocked and couldn’t continue” his lesson.
Sophie Vénétitay, general secretary of Snes-FSU, the main secondary school union, said: “This raises the question of the police entering the school when there is no emergency situation. »
For the FCPE, the main federation of parents, “it is incomprehensible and shocking that a student could be detained in this way,” declared Ghislaine Morvan-Dubois, treasurer.
“We are aware that it is shocking,” Laurent Zameczkowski, spokesperson for Peep, another parents’ federation, told AFP. “But we cannot continue like this,” he added. “Attitudes need to change, and maybe this kind of shock was needed. »
Arrests in schools take place “only when there is an emergency situation, when there is no other choice”, explained a police source, specifying that the school director can oppose it. “They are still minors. “I don’t see the point,” continued this source. Another police source defended the “educational effect” of this type of detention for students, for this type of situation, harassment and serious threats.
The Minister of Education, Gabriel Attal, said he “understood” that this “could raise questions”, while declaring that “there cannot be serenity without authority” and that harassment requires “a rapid reaction” . “No one should underestimate a phenomenon which has caused the tragic deaths of several young people in our country and which is ruining the lives of thousands of others. »
The schoolboy, who expressed his regrets, appeared before the prosecutor on Tuesday. He will have to carry out “an activity for the benefit of the community” in the coming weeks.
Source: Latercera
I’m Rose Brown , a journalist and writer with over 10 years of experience in the news industry. I specialize in covering tennis-related news for Athletistic, a leading sports media website. My writing is highly regarded for its quick turnaround and accuracy, as well as my ability to tell compelling stories about the sport.
