beyond security, guardians of the social bond

Being at the heart of the territory is in the gendarme’s DNA. From the first moments of this immersion of several days – and nights – within the community of brigades (COB) of Bellême, in Orne, the proximity with the population is obvious.

Attached to the Ministry of the Interior since the five-year term of Nicolas Sarkozy, these soldiers in blue uniform combine missions: protection of residents, arrests, legal investigations. But here, in this rural environment where stone houses nestle at the bend of wooded paths, they also provide support and listening to residents who are increasingly faced with social isolation.

The gendarmes see it on the ground: it only takes a divorce or the death of a spouse for loneliness to set in. And alcoholism or depression interferes. Isolated people also become easy targets for online scams. Scammers, hiding behind fake profiles on social networks, create the illusion of a romantic relationship in order to extort money from their prey. At the gendarmerie, more and more victims come to file complaints, heads down.

The gendarmes are thus increasing preventive actions: interventions in seniors’ associations, links with local elected officials, support for isolated people towards social structures. “If we are not there, who will?” asks adjutant Florian Kokocinski, while noting the contact details of an octogenarian, probably under the influence of her son, with a view to enrolling her in the seniors’ club.