Council of Europe urges France to respect human rights

The Council of Europe’s human rights commissioner on Tuesday called on France to show more respect for human rights while dealing with the Yellow Vest demonstrations.

“The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatovic, invites the French authorities to show more respect for human rights during operations aimed at maintaining public order,” the council said in a statement.

She also called on the French authorities to “refrain from introducing excessive restrictions to freedom of peaceful assembly through the bill on strengthening and guaranteeing public order at demonstrations.”

Mijatovic noted the main duty of the law enforcement officers is “to protect citizens and their human rights", referring to violence by the security forces during the demonstrations.

The number and seriousness of the injuries raise questions about the compatibility of the methods used by the security forces during protests.

She also urged the French authorities to ban use of the teargas, which caused injuries of many protesters.

Condemning violent actions during the demonstrations, Mijatovic encouraged the French authorities to share more detailed figures of the injured with the public.

On Feb. 14, the European Parliament (EP) adopted a resolution condemning the use of violence and disproportionate interventions by state authorities during peaceful protests in France.

French government defends the use of tear gas by police in order to maintain public order during protests.

Since Nov. 17, thousands of protesters wearing bright yellow vests -- dubbed the Yellow Vests -- have gathered in major French cities, including Paris, to protest French President Emmanuel Macron's controversial fuel tax hikes and deteriorating economic situation.

Under pressure, Macron announced a rise in the minimum wage and scuttled the tax hikes.

Since then, however, the protests have grown into a broader movement aimed at tackling income inequality and are calling for giving citizens a stronger voice in government decision-making.

At least 11 people died, around 8,400 others were detained, over 2,000 were injured in the protests and 1,796 people received prison sentence.