Paris: French President Emmanuel Macron has called on parents to keep their teenagers at home as a means to quell the rioting that has been spreading across France.
Macron made this plea after a second crisis meeting with senior ministers on Friday, where he emphasized the role of social media in fueling copycat violence following the fatal police shooting of a 17-year-old.
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Macron specifically singled out platforms such as Snapchat and TikTok, urging them to remove sensitive content that contributes to the spread of unrest.
He expressed concerns that violence is being organized online, stating that some young rioters seem to be influenced by video games and have a distorted perception of reality.
In order to address the issue, Macron announced plans to collaborate with technology companies to establish protocols for the removal of sensitive content.
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While he did not specify the exact nature of the content, he emphasized the need for responsibility from these platforms
Additionally, French authorities intend to request the identities of individuals who use social networks to incite disorder or exacerbate violence.
To restore order and take action against unacceptable and unjustifiable behaviour, Macron’s government has deployed 40,000 officers.
However, the president stopped short of declaring a state of emergency, a measure previously utilized by a past French government in 2005 following the accidental deaths of two boys while they were fleeing from the police.