France: the executive sounds the charge against brawls between young people
The Minister of the Interior Gérald Darmanin and the Keeper of the Seals Eric Dupond-Moretti, here in September 2020. AFP - LUDOVIC MARIN
Text by: RFI Follow
4 min
The Ministers of the Interior, Justice and Education met this Monday, March 1 to decree the general mobilization of the French government against the phenomenon of brawls between young people, which killed several people last week.
Publicity
Read more
The French government wants to tackle the issue of brawls between gangs of young people head on.
After the death of a schoolboy and a schoolboy, stabbed during various fights in Essonne on February 22 and 23, the Minister of the Interior had fixed an appointment to try to find an answer to this phenomenon .
At the end of this meeting, the Ministries of Justice and of the Interior announced the adoption of a renewed plan to fight gangs by May 1.
In particular, it plans to use local groups for the treatment of delinquency, on the model of the one set up in Paris, which brings together the police, town hall and educational services under the aegis of the prosecution.
Their goal will be to monitor social networks through which young people can meet to do battle.
Safety around schools, monitoring of school absenteeism and neighborhood mediation must also be reinforced.
"
We must be complementary in our actions,
" said the Minister of Education, Jean-Michel Blanquer, during a trip to Haute-Saône.
A new code of criminal justice for minors
To avoid new tragedies, we need a generalization of “
good practices
”, pleaded the Minister of Justice Eric Dupond-Moretti, referring to “
better collaboration between the various public prosecutors
” and a tenfold recourse to “
publication bans
”.
"
We must develop
" these alternatives to prosecutions which allow "
to extract
" young people "
from the gang
".
The Minister of Justice also highlighted the new Code of Criminal Justice for Minors, which will enter into force on September 30 and aims to reduce trial times.
"
We will go from extremely long delays where we see 16-year-old kids who are tried when they are 22
" to "
justice that can be done very, very quickly,
" he said.
"
If we let it go and no response intervenes, there is a risk of repetition
."
We talk a lot and rightly about juvenile justice.
Yes, juvenile justice is running out of steam.
And because it is running out of steam, we have completely reformed it.
This weekend was enacted a Code of Criminal Justice for Minors.pic.twitter.com/rR5KT57oId
- Eric Dupond-Moretti (@E_DupondM) March 1, 2021
According to the Interior Ministry, 357 clashes between gangs were recorded in 2020 against 288 in 2019, an increase of nearly 25%, and three people were killed and 218 injured during clashes last year.
Nationally, the ministry identifies 74 bands, including 46 within the jurisdiction of the Paris police headquarters, which also includes Seine-Saint-Denis, Val-de-Marne and Hauts-de-Seine.
(
With
AFP)
Newsletter
Receive all international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
google-play-badge_FR
France
Criminality