Emmanuel Macron will go further on Saturday October 16 than his predecessor François Hollande who admitted, in 2012, a “
bloody repression
” of Algerians in Paris on October 17, 1961, by recognizing “
a historical truth
” during official ceremonies in Colombes (Hauts -de-Seine).
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The commemoration will be held from 3.30 p.m. at the Pierre Lagravère departmental park, at the foot of the Pont de Bezons.
The president will lay a wreath on the quays of the Seine, will respect a minute of silence and will meet with the families of the victims, but he is not expected to deliver a speech.
At the end of the ceremony, on the other hand, a text will be broadcast "
in the form of a press release which will indicate precisely what will be the meaning and scope of this recognition
", assures the Elysee.
A new milestone to be crossed
In this declaration, the Head of State should take "
one more step compared to what François Hollande said in 2012
" who then regretted a "
bloody repression
". "
He will take a step forward in recognizing what happened and will confirm the truth of the facts
", assures the same source. "
This is the first time that a President of the Republic will participate in a ceremony in memory of the victims of the events of October 1961 in Paris
", underlined the Elysee. An approach which “
is fully in line with the Head of State's commitment to commemorate three key memorial dates recommended by the Stora report
”.
It is also "
a historic step in the recognition of the facts which took place on this date
".
"
As part of the process of appeasing memories of colonization and the Algerian war undertaken by the President of the Republic since the start of the five-year term, this commemoration will take place in the presence of members of the families affected by this tragedy," of those who fought for the recognition of the truth and representatives of all the memories of the Algerian war
”, added the Élysée.
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On October 17, 1961, while the Algerian war had lasted for seven years, 30,000 Algerians who had come to demonstrate peacefully in Paris had suffered a violent repression.
Official assessment: three dead and sixty wounded, very far from reality according to historians.