Parisians living along the Seine, near the Trocadéro or the Champ-de-Mars, barge owners but also their guests as well as all those who work in these areas will have to register on an online platform. This is the condition for being authorized to enter these sectors during the Olympic Games approximately a week before the opening ceremony scheduled for July 26.
In an exclusive interview with Le Parisien-Aujourd'hui in France, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin revealed that this dedicated site would open on May 10. This mandatory (and free) process concerns “several tens of thousands of people”, according to the tenant of Place Beauvau. It targets all those who are required to enter the protection zone known as “Silt” resulting from the Internal Security and Fight against Terrorism law.
“We will be particularly vigilant”
Concretely, you will have to “give your name, first name, date of birth…” “If you have not registered, you will not be able to enter,” warns Gérald Darmanin, even if people will be able to access sites like the Louvre museum. or Austerlitz station, with their entry ticket or train ticket, via access outside the perimeter.
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Spectators with tickets for the opening ceremony are also exempt from this QR code. Candidates for the QR code will be subject to “security screenings” to compare the profile with the files of the intelligence services. “We will be particularly vigilant to ensure that no dangerous person accesses the security perimeters,” insists France’s top cop.
If the applicant passes this stage of the “security check”, they will receive a QR code, available on their smartphone or tablet, which they can print. “You will start using it a week before the opening ceremony, from the moment the security perimeter becomes watertight,” describes Gérald Darmanin. “Pedestrian or non-pedestrian”, each person concerned must present their pass with proof of identity to the police. “Once within this perimeter, your freedom will be total. 45,000 police officers and gendarmes will monitor this area,” he recalls.
No guest quota for perimeter residents
Guests of barge or apartment owners with a breathtaking view of the Seine during the river parade will be able to enter the area under high surveillance provided they have this QR code. Their number will not be limited, there will be “no quotas” according to the minister. “We will send educational messages to avoid crowding. We trust the civic duty of residents not to be too numerous on balconies or barges. But neither I nor the police chief will police the balconies, it is not our competence,” he warns.
Internet will be the only way to register on this platform. An awareness campaign among local residents will be launched soon. “With Paris town hall, we will go door to door, drop leaflets in mailboxes, and help people register. The police will make discernment: if a 95-year-old gentleman arrives with his identity document, we will do the work with him,” reassures Gérald Darmanin.