Before politicians take a bath:

Parisian internet mob wants to defecate in the River Seine

The Seine, which flows through Paris, was cleaned up at a cost of more than one billion euros before the Olympic Games.

(Bild: AFP)

Outraged citizens want to send unpleasant greetings to French President Emmanuel Macron, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo and Police Prefect Laurent Nunez via the water. After Hidalgo announced her intention to swim in the Seine before the Summer Olympics in Paris in order to demonstrate the improved water quality of the river, where competitions are also to be held, there are now plans to deliberately pollute it.

The planned date for the politicians to jump into the Seine water is circulating in the media as June 23. As a result, an initiative has formed on social media using the hashtag #JeChieDansLaSeineLe23Juin. Bluntly translated, this means: "I'm pooping in the Seine on June 23." The message to "MacronHidalgoNuñez" is: "After they've fucked us up, it's their turn to bathe in our shit." The call was shared thousands of times on social media and added: "Take up arms, citizens! Form your battalions!"

Calculator takes location and flow velocity into account
A dedicated website even offers a calculator for those who live above Paris on the banks of the Seine, which flows at an average of two kilometers per hour: "Enter the distance from Paris from where you want to poop so you know when to act so that your gift arrives on June 23." A photomontage circulating is also unmistakable: it shows specially provided toilet shells on a quay on the Seine.

Anne Hidalgo is the mayor of Paris

(Bild: APA/AFP/Thomas SAMSON)

Cleaning the Seine cost 1.3 billion euros
The Seine, which has been heavily polluted for many years, has been cleaned at a cost of 1.3 billion euros over the past three years. Investments have been made in disinfection and water treatment plants, structures to collect rainwater and the connection of houseboats to the sewage system, but at the beginning of April, the NGO Surfrider Foundation published "alarming" results about the water quality of the river on which the grand opening ceremony is to take place on July 26.

It is unlikely to be safe to hold the open water swimming and triathlon competitions in the Seine until the last minute, after heavy rainfall could cause canals to overflow. There are no alternative venues for the open water swimming. The ultimate "Plan B" for the triathlon is to cancel the swim - which would turn the triathlon into a duathlon consisting of cycling and running.

From summer 2025, the public will also be allowed to swim in the river again in some areas, which has been banned since 1923.