China speaks out on France police shooting

By Hajer M’tiri

PARIS (AA) - China has called on France to “guarantee the safety and legal rights and interests of Chinese citizens” after several people were arrested in Paris disturbances over the killing of a Chinese man by French police on Sunday.

Around 150 people, many of Chinese origin, clashed with police on Monday night after an officer shot dead a Chinese man on Sunday in the 19th arrondissement of the French capital. At least 35 people were arrested.

Speaking on Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said her government had filed an official complaint over the events and had summoned the French envoy.

France should also “treat the reaction of Chinese people to this incident in a rational way,” Chunying told a regular news conference in Beijing.

"Meanwhile, we hope that our citizens... in France can express their wishes and demands in a lawful and reasonable way," she added.

According to French police, officers were called to the man's house after reports of a domestic dispute. Police say an officer shot the 56-year-old man -- whose identity has not been released -- in self-defense after being attacked with scissors.

However, Calvin Job, a lawyer representing the dead man’s family, was quoted by French daily Le Figaro claiming there had been no domestic incident and that the man was shot without warning after a neighbor called police about shouting.

He said the man had been holding scissors because he had been cutting fish.

The French Foreign Ministry said an investigation was ongoing.

"The safety of all Chinese nationals in France is a priority of the French authorities...This is what the Consul General of France in Beijing confirmed during his meeting with the Chinese authorities," it added.