Mounted police are to start patrolling schools in Paris’s toughest suburb as
gang violence among pupils increases.
[telegraph.co.uk] France’s public security department, the DDSP (Direction départementale de la
sécurité publique) announced the initiative following a bottle of acid being
thrown at teachers last week. It was the latest in a series of attacks involving delinquents, most from
tinderbox suburbs of Seine-Saint-Denis, the centre of widespread rioting
three years ago. The acid was thrown in the entrance of Nelson-Mandela College, close to the
ring road north of Paris in the town of Le Blanc-Mesnil. Nobody was injured in the attack, but the authorities believed that urgent
action was necessary. Mounted police officers are now set to stand guard at the entrance of the
college, with a DDSP spokesman explaining: “These mounted officers will be
visible from a long way away, and what’s important for adolescents is that
they understand that the forces of law and order are present and living with
them.
“The presence of a horse will be welcome to some, but it will also bring
respect.” Until now police officers have generally only be used for crowd
control during sporting events or public demonstrations.
Gang warfare has been on the rise in the areas around Le Blanc Mesnil,
especially the French capital’s 19th arrondissement which Le Monde newspaper
recently dubbed “The Paris Bronx”, after the notoriously lawless district of
New York.
Battles between youngsters take place over anything, especially drug deals and
territorial disputes.
Earlier this month a man was shot dead in the area, with another seriously
wounded. On September 15th two youths were stabbed.
The most high-profile attack came in June when a Jewish teenager was left in a
coma after being beaten with metal bars by anti-Semitic youths.
Earlier this year, President Nicolas Sarkozy’s government unveiled an £800
million plan aimed at tackling social problems in run down estates like Le
Blanc-Mesnil, investing in job creation schemes, education and transport.
However, the former Interior Minister is best known for his reactionary
approach to trouble – invariably sending riot police into what he described
as “ghettoes”, and calling lawless locals “scum” who should be “washed away
with a power hose.”
Responding to such emotive language and behaviour, former Socialist prime
minister Laurent Fabius said: “We need to act on prevention, education,
housing, jobs … and not play the cowboy.” A Paris police spokesman said:
“Mounted police will patrol indefinitely at the entrance of schools where
there is a threat to public order.”
Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk
