| Series Title | EurActiv |
|---|---|
| Series Details | 13.01.16 |
| Publication Date | 13/01/2016 |
| Content Type | News |
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The terrorist attacks in Paris in November 2015 led the French government to impose a state of emergency for a limited period. In the weeks and months following the French authorities decided that it was appropriate to both extend the state of emergency and to change the procedures whereby a state of emergency could be declared. Opinion in France and in Europe was divided as to the changes proposed. Nils Muiznieks, a human rights observer from the Council of Europe, considered on 12 January 2016 that France's decision to install a state of emergency following the deadly terrorist attacks in Paris on 13 November 2015 could constitute a 'threat' to democracy. France extended the state of emergency through to the end of February 2016 as President François Hollande agreed to give greater powers to security services to act without requiring judicial oversight or search warrants. The Conseil d’État, France’s highest court on administrative justice, rejected an appeal on the 27 January 2016 to suspend the state of emergency. In its ruling, the Conseil d’État noted that, 'the imminent peril justifying the state of emergency has not disappeared given the continuation of terror threats and the risk of attacks'. The ruling came hours after Christiane Taubira resigned from her post as France’s justice minister over her opposition to the government’s bid to amend the constitution so that dual nationals convicted of terrorism could be stripped of their French citizenship. The French government called for a three-month extension to the state of emergency on the 3 February 2016. Members of France’s National Assembly, the lower house of the French parliament, approved on the 10 February 2016 the proposed measures to change the country’s constitution. The Senate, the upper house of the French parliament, were scheduled to examine the bill in March 2016. The 317-199 vote in the lower house of Parliament was the first hurdle towards the adoption of the reforms, which had been championed by Prime Minister Manuel Valls but had been opposed from members of his own ruling Socialist Party. The bill would enshrine the enactment of a state of emergency into France’s constitution and allow authorities to strip French nationality from people convicted of terrorism charges. The law was adopted in June 2016. |
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| Source Link | http://www.euractiv.com/sections/justice-home-affairs/french-democracy-under-threat-state-emergency-320908 |
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| Subject Categories | Security and Defence |
| Countries / Regions | France |
