French policemen get suspended jail terms for 'yellow vest' violence

PARIS: Two French policemen were handed suspended jail sentences on Thursday for violence against"yellow vest" protesters on May 1, the first convictions of law enforcers since the anti-government revolt started more than a year ago.AdvertisementCritics have regularly denounced heavy-handed policing tactics during the weekly protests over a perceived loss of spending power, which began in November 2018 and often spiralled into vandalism and running battles with police.

Two videos emerged of the incident in which an officer can be seen picking up a pavement stone and hurling it at demonstrators about eight metres away. It cannot be seen where the stone lands.The court found the policeman filmed had not acted in self-defence, and was seeking to deliver a"physical or psychological shock" to make protesters stop throwing projectiles.

In his defence, the policeman had told the court he acted"out of fear" and not anger, and threw the stone to"create some distance" for security reasons, but did not wish to hurt anyone.The other policeman was found guilty of slapping a yellow vest protester in a confrontation that was also captured on video. He was also fined €1,000 in damages. He too will be allowed to continue working.

Fierce violence that flared during the protests made headlines worldwide, with rioters running amok in Paris and other cities, smashing shopfronts, torching cars and looting businesses.

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