wikipedia | The Paris massacre of 1961 was a massacre in Paris on 17 October 1961, during the Algerian War (1954–62). Under orders from the head of the Parisian police, Maurice Papon, the French police attacked a forbidden demonstration of some 30,000 pro-FLN Algerians.
Two months before, FLN had decided to increase the bombing in France
and to resume the campaign against the pro-France Algerians and the
rival Algerian nationalist organization called MNA
in France. After 37 years of denial, in 1998 the French government
acknowledged 40 deaths, although there are estimates of over 200.[1]
The 17 October 1961 massacre appears to have been intentional, as has
been demonstrated by historian Jean-Luc Einaudi, who won a trial
against Maurice Papon in 1999 — the latter was convicted in 1998 on
charges of crimes against humanity for his role under the Vichy collaborationist regime during World War II.
Official documentation and eyewitnesses within the Paris police
department indeed suggest that the massacre was directed by Maurice
Papon. Police records show that Papon called for officers in one station
to be 'subversive' in quelling the demonstrations, and assured them
protection from prosecution if they participated.[2] Many demonstrators died when they were violently herded by police into the River Seine,
with some thrown from bridges after being beaten unconscious. Other
demonstrators were killed within the courtyard of the Paris police
headquarters after being arrested and delivered there in police buses.
Officers who participated in the courtyard killings took the precaution
of removing identification numbers from their uniforms, while senior
officers ignored pleas by other policemen who were shocked when
witnessing the brutality. Silence about the events within the police
headquarters was further enforced by threats of reprisals from
participating officers.
Forty years later, Bertrand Delanoë, member of the Socialist Party (PS) and Mayor of Paris, put a plaque in remembrance of the massacre on the Saint-Michel bridge on 17 October 2001.[3][4] How many demonstrators were killed is still unclear, but estimates
range from 70 to 200 people. In the absence of official estimates, the
placard which commemorates the massacre stated: "In memory of the many
Algerians killed during the bloody repression of the peaceful
demonstration of 17 October 1961". On 18 February 2007 (the day after
Papon's death), calls were made for a Paris Métro station under construction in Gennevilliers to be named "17 Octobre 1961" in commemoration of the massacre.[5][6]
