(Source: AFP) Francoise (a pseudonym), a French victim of Vietnamese origin, was recently attacked in the suburbs of Paris.
November 2nd. As the second wave of the new crown virus continues to worsen, stigmatized posts about “Chinese spreading the virus” have recently appeared on French social media, insulting or even death threats against Chinese people, calling for “attacks Every Chinese I met on the street”.
Since French President Macron announced on October 28 that the nationwide blockade will be restarted, the spread of these posts has accelerated, and some people in the Asian community have been personally attacked. This situation aroused the attention of law enforcement agencies.
According to the “Parisian” report, the Paris Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation into this blatant provocation involving racist personal assaults, and is handed over to the French Brigade (BRDP).
According to a person familiar with the matter, investigators have identified the main person who posted the hate tweet, and some popular posts on Twitter have been deleted.
A reporter from The Parisian newspaper saw in the 13th arrondissement of Paris, which has about 40,000 Asian residents, on October 31 that Olympia Square was empty and the street atmosphere was depressed.
A member of the local Asian Business Association said, “People who dare not go out, especially the elderly, are not afraid of the new crown virus, but of being attacked.”
The spokesperson of the Paris organization “Anti-Violence, Be Safe” stated that this kind of hate speech began to intensify in the evening of October 28, in Paris and in the suburbs of Aubervilliers, Pantin, New Court, and Bo Binny, Creteil in the Marne Valley, Vitry-sur-Seine and other Chinese-inhabited cities are particularly concerned about threats. The spokesperson encouraged victims to lodge complaints, but also said that Chinese people tend to be cautious and low-key and rarely report crimes.
Jerome Gumei, the mayor of the 13th arrondissement of Paris, said that he has paid attention to this matter and remains vigilant about it. However, he also mentioned that “the 13th district police station has not received any reports in the past few days.”
Chen Wenxiong member of the French ruling party “Republic Forward”, met with the French Asian High Council on October 31 to discuss this situation. , He said that he will make an appointment with the police station as soon as possible and take quick action to avoid an escalation of the situation.
