The tattoos of discord. On Tuesday afternoon, several police officers wearing "valknut" tattooed on their forearms were photographed in the streets of Lille (North), on the sidelines of demonstrations against the pension reform. These images, which were authenticated by Le Parisien, were widely relayed and became viral on social networks. And sparked outrage.
Today in Lille, several police officers were photographed displaying a symbol very popular among white supremacists and neo-Nazis: the Valknut.
Explanations ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/70xPr8IsA6
— Ricardo Parreira (@RicardParreir) June 6, 2023
The "valknut" is a symbol from Norse culture and Scandinavian mythology, often associated with the Celts and Vikings, represented by three intertwining triangles. In the twentieth century, it was taken up by the "völkisch" movement, an intellectual current that appeared in Germany with supremacist, racist and anti-Semitic vocations and ideologies.
Police officers cannot be convicted
"It was following the invasion of the Capitol in the United States that this symbol became known to the general public. In France, this symbol is used by QAnons and neo-Nazis," says the site IndexTrême, which lists the graphic symbols reappropriated by the far right in France.
Is exhibiting this kind of symbol as a tattoo criminally reprehensible? "It is forbidden to wear or exhibit symbols of organizations condemned by the special tribunal of Nuremberg, after the Second World War, such as the swastika," says Sarah Kerrich-Bernard, a lawyer at the Lille Bar.
"But even if the signs identified on the forearms of police officers are supremacist and racist signs, without a doubt, they escape criminal law because they are not swastikas or organizations formally condemned by a court," she said. In other words, the police officers photographed cannot be convicted by the French justice system for having tattooed these symbols and having exhibited them.
"A problem of ethics specific to police officers"
"However, police officers do not have the right to wear tattoos on their arms that correspond to an expression of interest in a political, union, confessional or associative organization, or if they undermine the fundamental values of the Nation," recalls Kerrich-Bernard, who relies on a note from the General Directorate of the National Police (DGPN), public, dated January 12, 2018. She specifies that it is the exhibition of these tattoos that is prohibited: the police can tattoo what they want on the body, as long as it is not visible.
If the "valknut" does not belong to any of the types of organization cited by the DGPN, it is used and taken up by small groups whose values and ideologies go against those of the French Republic. "The valknut is part of the logo of the UNIP (Unity of Nationalists, Identitarians and Patriots) neo-Nazi movement created in 2016, and which no longer exists," reports IndexTrême.
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"It is therefore a problem of ethics specific to police officers," concludes Sarah Kerrich-Bernard. The lawyer, also general councillor of Hauts-de-France, confirms to the Parisian that she will seize the IGPN this Tuesday. It has sharper and more precise photos that make it possible to better identify the police officers targeted. If they are not criminally punishable, they may be punished by their superiors. Contacted, the prefecture of the North did not respond to our requests.
