Police in France - Statistics & Facts
The French national police force is under the responsibility of the Ministry of the Interior, and its officers are therefore civil servants. According to the Code of Ethics of the National Police and the National Gendarmerie: "The mission of the Police and the Gendarmerie is to ensure the defense of national institutions and interests, the maintenance of peace and public order, and the protection of people and property". Police activity is divided into five main areas: ensuring the safety of people, property and institutions; controlling migratory flows and combating illegal immigration; combating organized crime, serious crime and drugs; protecting the country against external threats and terrorism; and maintaining public order.
In addition, salaries are deemed too low, while the pressure placed on them by a "numbers policy", introduced under Nicolas Sarkozy and criticized by the profession's unions, is increasing. Finally, the lack of recognition from their superiors and the feeling of being rejected by public opinion are further undermining police morale. In fact, the suicide rate in this profession is much higher than that of the general French population. This overall dissatisfaction is particularly acute among the lowest-ranking police officers.
A mixed perception of the police
Generally speaking, the national police force has a fairly good image in French society - particularly among older people and right-wing voters - and the majority of police officers feel useful in their profession. Nevertheless, part of the population is concerned about police officers, and around 30 percent of French people do not trust them. This fear of the police may be rooted in a number of highly publicized cases of racism, violence, and even homicide.Addressing systemic racism
The issue of racism seems taboo within the police: since June 2020, and even though they exist, the IGPN (French National Police Inspectorate) no longer lists judicial investigations for racist and discriminatory insults in its statistics, only keeping the "discriminatory insults" category. While the aim is probably to avoid raising suspicions of racial discrimination, this lack of transparency could contribute to a feeling of mistrust among the population towards its police force, and nurture a feeling of impunity. Yet a number of cases regularly reopen the debate. Tragedies such as the Malik Oussekine affair or, much more recently, the assault on music producer Michel Zecler, or the death of a 17-year-old teenager, Nahel, killed in June 2023 by a police officer now on trial for intentional homicide, have shocked public opinion and damaged the image of the police. While public authorities refer to isolated incidents committed by black sheep, others denounce systemic violence and racism within the police force.A growing number of cases of violence
The violence of police actions has also come under particular scrutiny in recent years. While it may seem legitimate in the context of specific interventions against delinquency and crime, it has now infiltrated demonstrations. Since the emergence of the Yellow Vests movement, the repression of social movements by police forces has appeared particularly brutal, if not excessive in the eyes of some, even to the point of being denounced by the UN. The unregulated use of weapons such as blast balls and dis-encirclement grenades seriously injured several demonstrators between 2018 and 2019. More recently, similar cases of police brutality were reported during the mobilizations against Prime Minister Borne's pension reform, which started in early 2023 and lasted for months.A profession-wide crisis?
However, the situation of police officers seems to be far from ideal: with the deterioration in their working conditions, the exercise of their duties has become more difficult in recent years. Despite an increase in the number of police officers promised by the government, their number in the field remains insufficient.In addition, salaries are deemed too low, while the pressure placed on them by a "numbers policy", introduced under Nicolas Sarkozy and criticized by the profession's unions, is increasing. Finally, the lack of recognition from their superiors and the feeling of being rejected by public opinion are further undermining police morale. In fact, the suicide rate in this profession is much higher than that of the general French population. This overall dissatisfaction is particularly acute among the lowest-ranking police officers.
