Saudi Arabian royals who annexed an entire public beach for their stay in the south of France have reportedly ordered local police not to allow female officers anywhere near them.
More than 100,000 people have already signed a petition against billionaire King Salman and his entourage having Mirandole Beach, in Vallauris, between Cannes and Antibes, to themselves.
And yesterday, demonstrators - including nude swimmers - made their feelings known during a protest.
Now the police are furious, suggesting the visitors from the repressive Middle Eastern state do not believe in equal rights.
‘We’re the victims of discrimination,’ said one police source.
‘One of our colleagues was asked to leave the area on Saturday night because the Saudis felt uncomfortable with her around. This kind of discrimination should not be going on in France.’
A second female officer was on Sunday also ordered away from Chateau de l’Horizon, the king’s £5million-plus holiday mansion which was once used by Winston Churchill, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, and Marilyn Monroe.
Sylvain Martinache, a police union spokesman, said: ‘Is it because the king and his guests don’t want to see women guarding them, or is it because they want to bathe out of view of any women?
‘It’s quite shocking. But it’s diplomacy. There are around 1,000 people in this villa every evening. It’s great for the local economy.’
Like Britain, France sells millions of pounds worth of arms to Saudi Arabia every year and considers the country one of its greatest allies, despite its human rights abuses.
This is why the Ministry of the Interior in Paris is now thought to have agreed to keep all women officers away from the Saudis.
Despite ongoing protests, the authorities have allowed the beach to be shut off because of ‘security concerns’, according to a spokesman for the local prefecture.
King Salman arrived in a convoy of armoured Mercedes limousines accompanied by motorbike outriders after touching down by private Boeing 747 at nearby Nice airport last Saturday morning.
Some 1,000 members of the king's entourage are being put up in hotels in nearby resort towns, including Cannes, where luxury hotel rooms can cost upwards of £750 a night.
The party have even been allowed to build a temporary lift from the promenade down to the sand, to save Royal Family members, and especially the 79-year-old monarch, having to use the stairs.
Genevieve Delemer, another local who has signed the petition, said: ‘It’s an outrage. You can’t just build things like that on a public beach. Who do they think they are?’
The online petition against such luxury excess reads: ‘This beach, like any other public maritime domain, should be available for everyone, including residents, tourists, French people and foreigners.’
It calls on the prefecture and France’s Socialist government to ‘recognise the unanimous wave of indignation’ and to reverse its decision to privatise the beach.
Rich families who have successfully shut off stretches of coastline on the Riviera in the past have included former president Nicolas Sarkozy and his third wife, the former supermodel Carla Bruni.
Francois-Xavier Lauch, of the Alpes-Maritime prefecture, said: ‘This closure is consistent with what would happen with a visit by any head of state, whether it was President Francois Hollande or Barack Obama.’
Source:http://www.dailymail.co.uk
More than 100,000 people have already signed a petition against billionaire King Salman and his entourage having Mirandole Beach, in Vallauris, between Cannes and Antibes, to themselves.
And yesterday, demonstrators - including nude swimmers - made their feelings known during a protest.
Now the police are furious, suggesting the visitors from the repressive Middle Eastern state do not believe in equal rights.
‘We’re the victims of discrimination,’ said one police source.
‘One of our colleagues was asked to leave the area on Saturday night because the Saudis felt uncomfortable with her around. This kind of discrimination should not be going on in France.’
A second female officer was on Sunday also ordered away from Chateau de l’Horizon, the king’s £5million-plus holiday mansion which was once used by Winston Churchill, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, and Marilyn Monroe.
Sylvain Martinache, a police union spokesman, said: ‘Is it because the king and his guests don’t want to see women guarding them, or is it because they want to bathe out of view of any women?
‘It’s quite shocking. But it’s diplomacy. There are around 1,000 people in this villa every evening. It’s great for the local economy.’
Like Britain, France sells millions of pounds worth of arms to Saudi Arabia every year and considers the country one of its greatest allies, despite its human rights abuses.
This is why the Ministry of the Interior in Paris is now thought to have agreed to keep all women officers away from the Saudis.
Despite ongoing protests, the authorities have allowed the beach to be shut off because of ‘security concerns’, according to a spokesman for the local prefecture.
King Salman arrived in a convoy of armoured Mercedes limousines accompanied by motorbike outriders after touching down by private Boeing 747 at nearby Nice airport last Saturday morning.
Some 1,000 members of the king's entourage are being put up in hotels in nearby resort towns, including Cannes, where luxury hotel rooms can cost upwards of £750 a night.
The party have even been allowed to build a temporary lift from the promenade down to the sand, to save Royal Family members, and especially the 79-year-old monarch, having to use the stairs.
Genevieve Delemer, another local who has signed the petition, said: ‘It’s an outrage. You can’t just build things like that on a public beach. Who do they think they are?’
The online petition against such luxury excess reads: ‘This beach, like any other public maritime domain, should be available for everyone, including residents, tourists, French people and foreigners.’
It calls on the prefecture and France’s Socialist government to ‘recognise the unanimous wave of indignation’ and to reverse its decision to privatise the beach.
Rich families who have successfully shut off stretches of coastline on the Riviera in the past have included former president Nicolas Sarkozy and his third wife, the former supermodel Carla Bruni.
Francois-Xavier Lauch, of the Alpes-Maritime prefecture, said: ‘This closure is consistent with what would happen with a visit by any head of state, whether it was President Francois Hollande or Barack Obama.’
Source:http://www.dailymail.co.uk
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