Drug trafficking is a “growing and extremely serious” threat and requires a “very firm response from the State”, declared Tuesday the Minister of Justice Didier Migaud, who must announce measures against this “scourge” on Friday with Bruno Retailleau.
“It is a growing and extremely serious threat with the use of the ultra-violent methods of the South American cartels,” he stressed on Franceinfo.
“The methods are murder, it’s corruption”, which is “a real subject that cannot be underestimated”, he detailed.
Next Friday, the Minister of Justice must go with the Minister of the Interior to Marseille, where the settling of scores between drug traffickers is particularly murderous and sordid, with the involvement of young people aged 14-15 as hired killers. The two ministers must announce several measures together.
“We are completely in sync,” assured Mr. Migaud.
Asked if there was a need for a law on the subject, he replied “of course”.
“You have considerable work done by a commission of inquiry which is formulating a certain number of proposals,” he observed, in reference to the Senate commission of inquiry into drug trafficking.
“We are completely open to these proposals,” said Mr. Migaud.
A bill has been on the Senate's desk since July, and Mr. Retailleau has already said that he wants it to be examined “as quickly as possible”, “at the beginning of the year at the latest”.
Asked about the question of creating a new national prosecutor's office dedicated to the fight against drug trafficking and organized crime as had been envisaged by his predecessor, Eric Dupond-Moretti, Mr. Migaud said he was “in favor of an organization which makes it possible to fight against this scourge.
“The national prosecutor's office can absolutely be a solution,” he judged, while indicating that it was “up to parliament to decide”.
On the issue of drug users, he considered that it was necessary to tackle “the subject of the recovery of fines”, but also said he was “in favor of information campaigns to show all the dangers of drugs on health.”
