Jean-Baptiste Salvaing og Jessica Schneider blev dræbt i sit hjem i Magnanville af en jihadist i juni 2016 foran øjnene på deres lille dreng.

En rapport der blev overleveret det franske Senat i sidste uge advarer om, at sikkerhedsstyrkerne er på randen af sammenbrud. Selvmordsraten er skyhøj. Politiet føler sig overladt til sig selv.

De møder en eskalerende voldsspiral, og fjendtligheden mod politiet er stigende i bestemte dele af befolkningen. Samtidig føler politiet ikke, at deres indsats bliver værdsat. Selvmordsraten er mange gange højere end gennemsnittet.

Det er to socialistiske senatorer, der har udarbejdet 32 forslag til forbedringer. De er dybt bekymret over krisen blandt sikkerhedspersonalet.

Two French senators are sounding the alarm – warning of a “crisis”, a “general malaise” and a “loss of meaning” – in a report submittedto the Senate on July 3. The survey painted a particularly bleak portrait of the state of law enforcement and called on the government to take urgent action.

Commissioned shortly after a wave of suicidesamong security forces in the autumn of 2017, the report describes a host of ills that are well known to all those who serve in the police and gendarmerie, where escalating violence and chronic underfunding are the order of the day.

Senator François Grosdidier siger, at mange politifolk er på sammenbruddets rand.

France 24; -Du har brugt mange uger med at undersøge tilstanden hos politiet. Situationen er alarmerende?

Når man hører svaret kan man ikke lade være med at tænke på banlieouerne (forstæderne/no-go zonerne) og muslimerne. En af de franske efterretningschefer sagde for et år siden, at der kunne bryde borgerkrig ud.

François Grosdidier:We are on the verge of implosion. The police and the gendarmerie have never been in such a dire state. First of all, there is a terrible lack of investment in equipment. Police buildings are old and often substandard. The average age of the gendarmerie’s vehicles is eight years and almost seven for the police, whereas this should be the maximum age for a law enforcement vehicle. Our security forces also lack basic supplies and technology. As for human resources, while there are no chronic understaffing issues like can be seen in neighbouring countries, two-thirds of the police and gendarmes’ working hours are devoted to judicial proceedings.

Det Grosdidier beskriver, er en stat, der ikke vil anerkende og værdsætte sit eget politi, som den er helt afhængig af, fordi det er politisk ubekvemt. Politikerne vil ikke vide af, at landet de leder er på vej udover kanten.

Hører man efter, hvad Grosdidier siger, så taler han om en stigende fjendtlighed mod politiet. Fra hvem?

Grosdidier:Very clearly. We are running the risk of seeing the security services becoming inoperable. Many of them are at the breaking point. The police are being forced to operate with fewer resources in the face of ever more violent threats – demonstrations that are more and more difficult to manage, with the emergence of the Black Blocs (fringe groups known as “les casseurs” who incite violence at protests) and a growing anti-police hostilityamong the citizenry.

Den værste del af truslen er jihadisterne. Politibetjentene har ikke glemt parret, der blev dræbt i deres hjem for øjnene af deres barn.

In addition to the problem of underinvestment, there is also today’s terrorist threat. Members of the police have been and still are being targeted. The Magnanville stabbingsparked real fear by targeting members of the police in their private capacity. (The June 2016 murder of a couple in Magnanville, Jean-Baptiste Salvaing and Jessica Schneider, who were both police officers, was claimed by the Islamic State group.)

Politiet gør en indsats de gerne vil have anerkendt og værdsat. I stedet føler de en stor tomhed. Det får mange politifolk til at tage deres eget liv.

Police today are looking for recognition and meaning. When they take significant risks and then find that the response is nil or inadequate in their eyes, it discourages them. At many other government agencies, officials would have just walked away. A large majority of them still have a strong will to serve the citizens because it is a calling. But some have finally let go, by either resigning or ending their lives. As for the number of suicides, we note these rates remain high even though risk-prevention measures have been put in place and new orders have been given to administration officials in recent years. These numbers would probably have been even more catastrophic without these initiatives.

Den socialistiske senator ønsker at budgettet skal øges fra 2 milliarder euro til 3.

Man får følelsen af, situationen er dramatisk, ikke mindst fordi politiet er overladt til sig selv.

Det er næsten som hentet fra en af Michel Houellebecqs bøger.

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