It’s been two decades since a wave of riots in France was sparked by the tragic death of two young men fleeing a police patrol in the Paris suburb of Clichy-sous-Bois. Have lessons been learnt, or could tensions over youth unemployment and police harassment easily explode again in France’s underprivileged suburbs? FRANCE 24’s Ségolène Malterre and Mélina Huet met residents to find out.
It was a tragic day in the history of France that led to weeks of riots and the declaration of a state of emergency. On October 27, 2005, three young men fled a police patrol in Clichy-sous-Bois, northeast of Paris. Two of them, Zyed Benna and Bouna Traoré, found refuge in an electrical substation, where they died after being electrocuted.
The incident ignited already rising tensions over youth unemployment and police harassment in France's poorer housing estates, leading to three weeks of riots across the country. The rioters called for social justice, jobs and cheaper transport. Thousands of vehicles across the country were set on fire, and almost 3,000 people were arrested.
So, have the lessons of the 2005 riots been learnt, or could tensions easily explode once again? Twenty years on, does Clichy-sous-Bois itself remain a symbol of the widespread discontent in the French suburbs?
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