In the Gendarmerie, the links between active and retired people are still very strong. On Friday April 26 in the afternoon, Colonel Jacques Mérino, commander of the departmental gendarmerie group of the Territoire de Belfort, received retirees from the National Union of Staff and Retirees of the Ud90 Gendarmerie. The opportunity to discover the daily life of their cadets.
Even if they have put away the uniform for 15, 20 or 30 years, a Gendarme removed from the ranks remains deeply attached to the institution with a credo which could be: Once a Gendarme, always a Gendarme.
Led by their president Christian Mercay, they came to discover the framework of action and the bases of the current work of the 176 civil and military personnel of the departmental gendarmerie group of the Territoire de Belfort. Behind its traditional missions of judicial police, assistance to people, maintenance of order and defense of the Nation, the Gendarmerie constantly adapts to be in step with the times.
Investigators at the cutting edge of new technologies and trained in the fight against cyber threats clearly illustrate this new, constantly evolving theater of operations. “These exchanges maintain the deep links between active Gendarmes and their elders by showing the permanent evolution of the Gendarmerie,” underlined the colonel.
“With 6,800 interventions and 2,500 crimes recorded in 2023, the presence of soldiers on the ground makes sense,” the officer further clarified.
After three hours of presentation and discussions, the former Gendarmes could be confident. Drawing on a centuries-old past, the oldest French institution has not lost its roots. Throughout its history, its esprit de corps, its availability and its adaptation remain the very essence of the profession. The generation of Gendarmes at the beginning of the 21st centuryth century, including those of the departmental gendarmerie group of the Territoire de Belfort, perpetuates this long history in its own way.
On the occasion of this visit, Christian Mercay presented the Unprg medal to Colonel Jacques Mérino.
Christian Mercay, president of Ud90.
