Vigipirate

Plan Vigipirate is the term for French security measures to protect against terrorism. The name is a contraction of "vigilance " ( vigilance ) and " pirate" (pirate). First created in 1978 under President Valéry Giscard d' Estaing in life, was the plan for 1995, updated in 2000 and 2003. Depending on the defined by the government stage of the plan differently strong security measures will be implemented.

The plan knows the steps yellow, orange, red and " écarlate " (paraphrased: dark, acute threat). Continuously since 7 July 2005 ( London bombings ) refers to the level "red". This expresses itself, among others, in the massive presence of security forces (including the military ), particularly at railway stations and in places with lots of tourists (such as the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower in Paris ).

Opponents of the plan criticize the restriction of civil liberties and privacy and provocative talk of a "Plan Vichypirate ", in allusion to the Vichy dictatorship of the 1940s.