The family, “deeply touched by all the marks of sympathy received”, wished to pay tribute to Matisse with a white march, which will start at 3:30 p.m. from Place La Fayette. “The family invites all participants to show respect throughout the route so that the walk takes place in a peaceful and united spirit”
The march, whose route is not revealed for “security reasons”, “will probably pass in front of the restaurant of Matisse’s father (Jeux 2 Goûts, editor’s note), with a stroll through the city”, simply confirmed the prefect of Indre Thibault Lanxade.
Up to 10,000 people expected
According to the latter, “3,000 to 10,000 people” are expected in this usually peaceful town of 43,000 inhabitants, where many traders have put photos of otters in their windows on Friday, thus responding to the appeal launched on Facebook by Matisse’s father, Christophe Marchais.
The teenager succumbed to his injuries last Saturday, after several stab wounds during a “brawl” that occurred in the Saint-Denis district, according to the Bourges public prosecutor.
His alleged attacker was indicted Monday evening for “murder” and placed in pre-trial detention, and his mother, aged 37 and suspected of having “slapped the injured victim”, was indicted for ” intentional violence” on “vulnerable person”.
Police “reinforcement”
Matisse’s murder comes after a wave of violence between young people, such as the fatal beating in Viry-Châtillon of 15-year-old Shemseddine, and in the middle of the campaign for the European elections.
In this context, the Afghan nationality of the two indicted – in a legal situation in France – has led several figures from the right and the extreme right to denounce the government’s “migratory policy”. On social networks and in encrypted messaging loops, photos of the suspect, his parents, and links to his personal accounts are shared.
Given “pressures” and the presence of “very young children” within this family, the prefect of Indre assured that “means were implemented to secure them from Thursday evening”.
“Let’s not mix everything up”
For several days, however, Matisse’s father Christophe Marchais has continued to warn: “Let’s not mix everything up. Be careful of all the parties on the right or elsewhere who appropriate this kind of thing,” he declared on RTL.
The family “does not want us to talk about immigration, to talk about nationality. It’s not something that resembles them,” the city’s mayor Gil Avérous reported on Monday.
