France: Macron to Lift State of Emergency By End of The Year
French president, Emmanuel Macron, has said that the he intends to lift France’s current state of emergency before the end of the year.
Speaking to both houses of parliament at a special gathering at the Palace of Versailles on Monday, Macron said that he intends to lift the country’s state of emergency by ‘the autumn’.
“I will re-establish the freedoms of the French people by lifting the state of emergency this autumn, because these freedoms are the precondition of the existence of a strong democracy,” he said.
The state of emergency was first implemented in November of 2015, after a string of devastating terrorist attacks in Paris and surrounds.
Suicide bombers detonated explosives at the Stade de France stadium where a football match was taking place, after which a mass shooting followed at the Bataclan Theatre in Paris. Several terrorists also stormed the streets of Paris, shooting at crowds and detonating explosives.
The jihadist terrorist attacks killed 130 people and injured hundreds of others, making it the deadliest attack in France since World War II.
The state of emergency has since been extended five times as the country continues to be on high alert.
The current provision of the state of emergency expires in mid-July, but it is expected that Macron and his government will extend it once more, until November.
As a way to up the efforts against terrorism in the country, Macron also implemented a stronger anti-terrorism law last month.
The new law will give French authorities more power to protect an event or location that may be targeted for a terrorist attack without first seeking approval from French courts.
While the law was welcomed by many members of parliament and was approved by France’s top administrative court, some organisations believe the new law is draconian in nature and will give authorities too much power.
The law will also allow places of worship, believed to be involved in extremism, to be shut down for at least six months by authorities.
Both Amnesty International and the Human Rights Watch have complained to French lawmakers about the new anti-terrorism law.
