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World View | Riots, Cheese and the Pursuit of Liberty

CISO Paul Raines on what American security can learn from the French

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April 30, 2008 — It's been said that the difference between France and America is that in France the government is afraid of the people and in America the people are afraid of the government.  I have to say that just having spent a week negotiating the myriad of rotaries on the highways of France; I'm scared of French people too&mdashespecially if they're driving a car.   I got cut off more times than a mouldy crust of bread.  For a country that makes 365 different kinds of cheese you'd think they could invest a little more time in learning to drive! 

In France there is no visible highway patrol.  There are gendarmes in the larger cities, call boxes on the sides of the roads for emergencies and occasionally you will see a speed camera, but for the most part the French take care of themselves on the road.   It seems the road belongs to the people with the junkiest cars and the most insurance.

The same goes for security in French cities.  The police presence is not nearly as great in France as it is in America.  That surprises me because of the numerous news clips I've seen in the recent past showing riots and protests in the streets of France.  Judging from the news you'd think French citizens walked around with a collective chip on their shoulders, just itching for the opportunity for the government to knock it off so that they can take to the streets&mdashpreferably in springtime, of course, and with a nice bottle of wine and a plate of cheese.  Seriously, though, I asked several of my French friends about this and they say that in France it's considered a citizen's responsibility that if they don't like something then they should take to the streets to protest. 

It's not that security isn't there, however.  The French police believe in responding in force when there is a clear threat.  Hence, the film clips of riot police battling the protest crowds.   The police exist and they turn out in force when the situation warrants.  It's certainly a different risk management approach than in America where a police presence is viewed by many as helping to deter crime.   In New York City, for instance, one of the reasons cited for the significant drop in crime was getting cops to start "walking the beat" and becoming a familiar face in the neighbourhood.  In France such police presence would be all too reminiscent of the European totalitarian regimes of the not so distant past. 

The French are also beginning to invest heavily in new technology to combat crime.  Last year the French Interior Ministry announced that in an effort to combat crime and fight terrorism they would be tripling the number of surveillance cameras in France by the year 2009.  They also revealed plans to employ data mining across different law enforcement databases an effort to better identify and track criminals.  Finally, they also plan to begin using flying spy drones to help combat growing gang violence.  Either that or they're doing it to keep an eye on President Sarkozy, his new wife, ex-super model Carla Bruni. 

Predictably, all theses ideas for increased surveillance went over like a Montgolfier sans gaz amongst a population that proudly counts liberté as the premier word in the motto of the French Republic.  The Interior ministry has already been forced by French civil rights groups to back down from its plans to use data mining across government databases.  It remains to be seen if there will be major protests in response to the Interior Ministry's other plans for increased surveillance.  This retrenchment stands in stark contrast to Americans who have by and large accepted that the government is allowed to eavesdrop on telephone conversations, snoop emails and postal mail and use spy satellites to track their movements.

There is much Americans can learn from the French in the realm of security.  First, democracy and the rights of individuals are far more important than any security measure that would take away those rights.  Benjamin Franklin said it best, "Those who would give up liberty for security deserve neither."  Second, just because technology allows us to do something, doesn't mean that it's a good idea to do it.  Lastly, when it comes to defending the Constitution I think Americans should be more like the French and occasionally take to the streets.  I think it would do a world of good for the attitude of a government if it were afraid of its citizens instead of the other way round. ##


World View columnist Paul Raines is CISO for a non-profit organization based in The Hague, Netherlands.

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