France: Lara Marlowe witnesses the trial of two young Frenchmen, both sons of immigrants from Mali accused of possessing an explosive device, in Bobigny criminal court, northeast of Paris
Youssouf Souare (20) and Bandiougou Diawara (18) stood as the judge read the charge against them: the fabrication or possession of an explosive or incendiary device, punishable by up to five years in prison, and a fine of up to €4,700.
Souare looked the most forlorn. Short and slightly built, with the frightened face of a child, he could be mistaken for a boy of 13 or 14. The two young Frenchmen, both sons of immigrants from Mali, were stopped at 9.30pm on Sunday night in the Paris suburb of Montreuil. Souare was driving.
By yesterday, French police had arrested 1,830 young men in 13 nights of rioting. Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin has asked the justice ministry to speed up procedures, to set examples. So 329 men, including Souare and Diawara, have been subjected to fast-track trials, and 173 have received fixed jail terms. The justice minister has told prosecutors to demand maximum penalties against "those who deliberately flaunt the rules of the Republic".
The two young men had not seen their families since they were arrested. "Do you accept to be judged immediately?" the judge asked. There was a car burning scarcely a kilometre away from the place where they were stopped, he continued. Two nights earlier, police had spotted Souare's car joyriding. "We weren't joyriding," Souare protested weakly. The police noticed "a strong odour of petrol" in the car, and found a rag on the floor. In the boot, they found a plastic bottle with a centimetre of petrol in it, and three more rags.
After two weeks of riots, there isn't a soul in France who doesn't know the ingredients for a Molotov cocktail. Souare told his lawyer the petrol in the almost empty mineral water bottle was left from weeks before, when he'd run out of fuel. He used the rags and the cleaning products in the boot for his job removing graffiti in a housing project. Police said a test showed both men had petrol on their hands.
Souare dropped out of school at 17, after an accident on his scooter. "My contract with the housing authority was extended," he said proudly. "My bosses said they were satisfied." "Neither has a criminal record," the judge mused out loud. Diawara worked as a guard for the housing project last summer. Two social workers, who sat with the families in the courtroom, had given a favourable report about him.
Diawara's lawyer said he often carries 40 litres of petrol in the boot of his car, for his lawnmower in the country. He congratulated the prosecutor for admitting he had doubts about whether a crime had been committed. "If one might suspect them of making incendiary devices, the rest of the cocktail was missing. They were in the wrong place at the wrong time. I demand an acquittal."
The judge asked if the accused had anything more to say before breaking for deliberations. Souare stood up and addressed the court. "My friend didn't know there was a bottle with petrol in the boot," he said, trying to protect Diawara.
A few minutes later, the three magistrates returned. "Monsieur Diawara and Monsieur Souare, the tribunal acquits you," the chief judge announced. "The facts have not been proven." Only 34 adults have been acquitted in cases linked to the unrest.
The judge had to shout to be heard over the applause that broke out in the courtroom: "I warn the public against any signs of approbation or disapprobation."