Parliamentary Support for the State of Emergency in France
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Parliamentary support for the state of emergency in France An analysis of how the French parliament and government renewed the state of emergency between November 2015 and December 2016 Marianne Chagnon 5828546 Utrecht University 3 August 2017 A Thesis submitted to the Board of Examiners in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Arts in Conflict Studies & Human Rights 1 Supervisor: Dr. Chris van der Borgh Date of submission: 3 August 2017 Programme trajectory followed: Research Project & Thesis Writing (30 ECTS) Word Count: 26,297 2 Abstract This thesis aims to understand the way the French parliament debated and voted to renew the state of emergency that was implemented by the French government in the night following the Paris attacks of November 2015. As it is quite a recent topic – the state of emergency was just renewed for five more months as of July 2017 – it is interesting to understand how a liberal democracy can implement such an exceptional system to fight a threat that is, in itself, not new. Indeed, it was not the first time that terrorist attacks happened in France, thus it raises questions as to why France keeps renewing this state of emergency, and most importantly what it is. As will be discussed in this thesis, the state of emergency gives exceptional prerogatives to the administrative authorities, facilitating and accelerating procedures and enabling them to take measures that would normally require judiciary approval. Because it is facilitating procedures, it has indeed helped the French authorities to prosecute suspected terrorists, to gather more proof through police raids, to keep dangerous people monitored under house arrests, and to prevent masses from being potential targets for terrorist attacks by prohibiting demonstrations. Although the effect of the measures decreased with time as their efficiency is mainly due to the element of surprise, the state of emergency also has a reassuring effect for the population. For all these reasons, and because the threat remains quite high, MPs and the Government thus argue that the state of emergency is still quite necessary, as it enables them to guaranty the country and its citizens’ security. 3 Acknowledgements I would first like to thank my supervisor, Dr. Chris van der Borgh, for his support throughout the entire research process. Thank you for taking the time to answer my (numerous) emails, especially for last-minute letters of recommendation. Above all, thank you for your always useful input and for the help you provided. A grateful thank you to Shona Flaherty, who helped me proofread this thesis and who listened to me complaining about my English and so many other things the entire year. Thanks to her and Anushka Singh for the numerous (European) chai lattes and garlic breads that made this year worth it. Lastly, and more importantly, I want to thank my family for always being here, no matter what. 4 Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................ 3 Acknowledgements ............................................................................................. 4 Table of Contents ................................................................................................ 5 List of terms and abbreviations ......................................................................... 7 Introduction ......................................................................................................... 8 Chapter 1 : Securitization theory .................................................................... 14 1.1 The three schools of securitization ................................................................. 14 1.2 The debates on the securitization framework ................................................. 18 1.3 Where this research is located within the academic debate ........................... 21 Chapter 2 : France, anti-terrorism and the state of emergency. .................. 23 2.1 Antiterrorism laws in France since 9/11 ........................................................ 23 A. The laws ................................................................................................................... 23 B. General discussion on the evolution of the French anti-terrorist legislation ........... 25 2.2 What is the French state of emergency? ........................................................ 26 A. The state of emergency: one of the four exception systems in France .................... 26 B. Previous times the state of emergency was declared ............................................... 28 C. The state of emergency measures then and now ...................................................... 30 D. The application of the measures: facts and figures .................................................. 32 E. Other anti-terrorist measures used at the same time as the 2015 state of emergency 35 2.3 Which controls on the state of emergency? ................................................... 36 A. The legal and parliamentary controls ....................................................................... 36 B. The state of emergency and fundamental rights ...................................................... 38 2.4 Conclusion ...................................................................................................... 40 Chapter 3 : The critiques of the state of emergency ...................................... 42 3.1 Towards a permanent exceptional measure ................................................... 42 3.2 More security but less liberty? ....................................................................... 44 3.3 When a single measure justifies the renewal of the state of emergency: the issue of house arrests ................................................................................................. 47 3.4 The use of the state of emergency as a tool to maintain public order ............ 49 3.5 The state of emergency: which efficiency in the fight against terrorism? ..... 51 3.6 Conclusion ...................................................................................................... 52 Chapter 4: Symbolic support for the state of emergency : Parliament and the state of emergency ...................................................................................... 55 4.1 Context: the role of Parliament ...................................................................... 55 4.2 The parliamentary debates ............................................................................. 58 A. The definition of the threat and the referent object .................................................. 59 B. The first three months of the securitization process ................................................ 61 1) The justifications for the state of emergency ....................................................... 61 2) The parliamentary debate of November 2015 ..................................................... 63 5 C. After the first three months and before the Nice attacks: towards a desecuritization process .............................................................................................................................. 65 1) The justifications of a transitional state of emergency ........................................ 66 2) The parliamentary debates of February and May 2016 ...................................... 67 D. After the Nice attacks; the resecuritization of terrorism .......................................... 70 1) The return of the threat as being imminent .......................................................... 70 2) The parliamentary debates of July and December 2016 ..................................... 71 4.3 The importance of the public opinion ............................................................ 74 4.4 Conclusion ...................................................................................................... 77 Conclusion: exiting the state of emergency .................................................... 80 Bibliography ...................................................................................................... 84 6 List of terms and abbreviations Assemblée Nationale National Assembly, the lower chamber of the French parliament ECHR European Court of Human Rights European Convention on Human Rights CNCDH Commission Nationale Consultative des Droits de l’Homme, National Commission on Human Rights, independent institution on human rights. Conseil Constitutionnel Constitutional Court Conseil d’État Council of State, the highest jurisdiction in French administrative law, which is the branch in charge of the state of emergency. DLPAJ Direction des Libertés Publiques et des Affaires Juridiques, department of the Ministry of Interior dealing with the state of emergency measures. Elysée Other name given to the French presidency NGO Non-Governmental Organization Sénat Senate, the upper chamber of the French parliament Political parties: EELV Europe Ecologie – Les Verts, left-wing party FN Front National, right-wing party LR Les Républicains, right-wing party PCF Parti Communiste Français, left-wing party PCD Parti Chrétien-Démocrate, right-wing party PRG Parti Radical de Gauche, left-wing party PS Parti Socialiste, left-wing party UDI Union des Démocrates et Indépendants, centre-right party 7 Introduction On the night of the 13th of November 2015, several attacks happened in Paris: at the stade de France where President Hollande was, in the streets on