“It is not a question of creating a crime of opinion”, assured this Thursday on France Info Gérald Darmanin about the “state security” file project, at a time when the restrictions imposed in the name of the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic and the recent proposal of “Global security” law earned his government a trial in authoritarian drift.
The day before, before the senators, Gérald Darmanin had stated that he wanted to avoid “Rediscover the old difficulties that our country may have known”.
The “Edvige” outcry
In 2008, the famous file called “Edvige”, which planned in particular to identify people exercising or having exercised a political, trade union or economic mandate, had aroused such an outcry that it had been withdrawn.
Published on December 4 after validation by the Council of State, three decrees have just revived the controversy by authorizing police and gendarmes to mention the ” Political Views “, “Philosophical and religious convictions” and of “Union membership” of their targets, while the previous texts were limited to listing “Activities”.
Identifiers, photos and comments posted on social networks will also be listed there, as will psychological and psychiatric disorders “Revealing a particular dangerousness”. In addition to natural persons, “legal persons”, such as associations, are also targeted.
“The opinions and the political activities in connection with the extremist parties, those which precisely advocate the separation, the revolution, must be known by the intelligence services”, justified Gérald Darmanin.
Three affected files
In detail, the decrees relate to three files: the Pasp (prevention of attacks on public security) of the police; the Gipasp (information management and prevention of attacks on public security) of the gendarmes and the EASP (administrative investigations linked to public security) used before the recruitment of civil servants in sensitive positions.
At the beginning of November, 60,686 people were registered with the Pasp, 67,000 with the Gipasp and 221,711 with the EASP, according to the Ministry of the Interior.
Previously limited to hooligans and violent protesters, these files will now also list those suspected of terrorist activity or likely “To undermine the integrity of the territory or the institutions of the Republic”, a notion “Fuzzy” according to his detractors.
Alone “Categories of persons defined on the basis of concrete material elements” are registered there, assures the Interior.
These additions have been decided “In view of the serious disturbances to public order which have developed since 2015”, start of the wave of jihadist attacks in France, and for “Respond to changing operational needs”, we justify place Beauvau.
“Regularize” certain practices
The decrees allow “Regularize” certain practices, writes the National Commission for Informatics and Liberties (Cnil), underlining that data was previously collected outside the legal framework.
The personal data gendarme, however, denounced the editorial staff “Particularly wide” certain categories of data, in particular those related to ” behaviour “, to the “Displacements” or to “Sports practices”.
« Lhe new nomenclature is much more detailed, less vague. Before, we could mix several information in a single item “, considers on the contrary a security source. This development created a stir on the left and in the ranks of the defenders of freedoms.
The decrees institute “A political police, a thought police”, revolt the Union of lawyers of France (SAF) and the judiciary (SM), which want to seize the Council of State, as the NGO La Quadrature du Net.
“The extent and scope of these changes are of concern”, say deputies of the “collective” Ecology, democracy, solidarity (EDS), composed of ex-LREM, who asked in writing “Explanations” to Gerald Darmanin.
The general secretary of Force Ouvrière, Yves Veyrier, wrote to the Minister of Labor Élisabeth Borne asking that “Union membership” be withdrawn from the decrees.
This is “An additional attack on our most fundamental freedoms”, denounced Europe Écologie Les Verts, while the deputy and spokesperson of the PS Boris Vallaud asked for the “Withdrawal” pure and simple texts.
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