From Morlaix, France – for centuries in Morlaix, a typical city of the Breton coast with its cobbled streets lined with crêperies, the most renowned goods has long been linen, whose trade during the Renaissance has made it possible to erect many charming half -timbered houses in the heart of the city.
The new merchandise that is all the rage is very different.
France has long been a leading market for illicit substances in Europe, and concerns are increasing vis-à-vis drug trafficking and the violence that accompanies it. According to experts, this phenomenon has become more visible in recent years in the cities of small and average sizes, thus bringing its share of insecurity in municipalities formerly as safe as they are peaceful. Morlaix and its 15,000 inhabitants are an example.
Ball impacts
“We face an influx of cocaine-it's unheard of”, explains the mayor, Jean-Paul Vermot.
He guides us one morning through Morlaix, proud to show us his picturesque marina, the balcony of the town hall from where General de Gaulle delivered a speech in July 1945 and the old Manufacture des Tabacs du XVIIIe century, now transformed into a cultural center.
He also shows us the bench where, three years earlier, a group of young dealers threatened to kill him and burn his house. With a gesture, he also designates HLM where drugs sold in broad daylight to a recent police intervention; Then the door of a residence still riddled with impacts of bullets after young traffickers tried to intimidate a young person who owed them money.
-In response to a “Simultaneous explosion” From the supply and demand for drugs, decision -makers compete in proposals to break traffic. Conservative politicians have decided to stigmatize consumers, including cannabis, for their support for this deadly trade, at a time when certain governments in America and Europe decriminalize, even legalize, the consumption of this drug.
It remains to be seen whether a real policy of “war against drugs” will be born, given the political instability of the country. The center of center right has indeed collapsed in December after deep disagreements on the 2025 budget. The formation of a new government, representing the same political edge, was announced just before Christmas.
France's “Mexicanization”
The Minister of the Interior, Bruno Retailleau, reliquat of the previous government known for his aggressive rhetoric, is one of the architects of this anti -drug plan. The Minister of Justice, Gérald Darmanin, advocates “Doing drugs what we did against terrorism” against drugs “ And wants to isolation the 100 largest drug traffickers currently incarcerated.
No doubt, any debate on the policy in matters of
