UN human rights experts have condemned the use of excessive force, violence, and mass arrests during the dispersal of student protests in France, APA reports, citing a statement by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
The experts noted that responding to social protests with excessive force, violence, and mass arrests is unacceptable in a state governed by the rule of law.
According to them, secondary school and university students in France are protesting to demand the normal functioning of the education system, the creation of appropriate conditions for education, improvements to school and university timetables, and equal access to quality education.
The experts stated that the protests, which began in mid-September 2026, initially involved school students, with university students later joining the demonstrations. In their view, the authorities' prioritization of security measures has pushed the underlying causes of the protests into the background.
UN experts described it as unacceptable that underage demonstrators sustained serious and, in some cases, irreversible injuries during law enforcement operations.
They also stated that the scale of the detention of several thousand people, mainly minors, appeared disproportionate and could prevent people from exercising their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.
The experts also condemned injuries sustained by police officers, damage to buildings, and the destruction of shops, calling for these incidents to be investigated and those responsible to be brought to justice.
UN representatives called on the French authorities to review the organization of police operations and methods of managing protests, and to create conditions for demonstrators to express their concerns peacefully.
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