In Saint-Brevin-les-Pins,
There have surely rarely been so many people on a Wednesday afternoon on Place Henri Baslé in Saint-Brevin-les-Pins (Loire-Atlantique). While in recent months, the seaside resort of 15,000 inhabitants has been the scene of tense demonstrations around the future center for asylum seekers, the one which brought together “nearly 3,000 people” at the end of a sunny day took place in calm. Reacting to the resounding resignation of its mayor, Yannick Morez, the target of an arson attack on his home and of serious pressure, the left-wing parties wanted to show him their solidarity, denouncing at the same time “the threat of extreme LAW “.
At the top of the stairs in the main square, a microphone in hand, the mayor of Nantes (PS) Johanna Rolland addressed the demonstrators, many of whom had put on their elected scarf or pulled out their union and association flags. “Yannick Morez found himself choosing between his private life and his commitment to public affairs, it’s unbearable, launches the one who was at the initiative of this gathering and who is now demanding justice. But this shock wave, which spread well beyond Saint-Brevin, occurred in a particular context in which the extreme right played a role that I refuse to ignore. (…) When we support Yannick Morez, we support democracy, the Republic, we show that we refuse to give in. »
“Political recovery”
At the initiative of the Socialist Party, this Wednesday’s march for a time announced as “transpartisan” nevertheless took on the air of a meeting of the Nupes, with among those present Jean-Luc Mélenchon, François Ruffin (LFI), Fabien Roussel (PCF), Marine Tondelier (EELV) or Olivier Faure (PS). “Frankly, their presence here is beyond us, judges a resident, close to the Brévinois collective of support for migrants. Even coming from Paris, they should have come from all parties, it would have been more serious! “But the watchwords, multiple (support for elected officials victims of violence, fight against the far right, but also support for migrants), as well as the tackle addressed to the State on the subject of failures in the protection of mayors , surely displeased some.
Renaissance, denouncing a “politician recovery”, therefore boycotted the event while “Macron resignation” rang out several times in the crowd. “I regret that my political family has not mobilized more, reacts for her part Marie-Cécile Gessant, the various right mayor of Sautron, present in the procession this Wednesday. There, we are not talking about parties, we are talking about solidarity between the mayors, between all the elected officials attacked, with a situation that is only getting worse! »
At the end of the march, Yannick Morez’s little speech
Another great absentee, Yannick Morez was also moved by the “political recovery of the far left” while regretting “the discretion of the right”. But the man who will leave his chair as mayor at the end of June, and will move outright to another town, still appeared at the end of the parade, which stopped in front of the town hall. Dressed in a floral shirt and a burgundy jacket, the city councilor, who has been particularly discreet for two weeks, gave a short speech, surrounded by his municipal team and accompanied by applause and a Marseillaise.
Referring to the “many messages of support” and “the media whirlwind”, he again deplored the lack of consideration of the state. “We were told not to file a complaint in the name of freedom of expression”, recalls the city councilor, who confides that “abandoning his team is not an easy thing” and that it will be necessary “to continue to beat “. “Me, that’s why I’m here: to defend freedom, all freedoms, reacts Bernadette, who came especially from Nantes. Say no to violence, because it is no longer possible. »
While according to the Ministry of the Interior, physical or verbal attacks against elected officials increased by 32% in 2022, Yannick Morez believes that “this figure is totally underdeveloped”. However, he welcomed the government’s first announcements, namely the creation of a security pack for elected officials to better protect and guide them in the event of threats or violence.