A survey has found that over seven in ten people in France believe that crime is “out of control”, with fears that the country is sliding towards a “Mexinization” in which public authority is destroyed.
According to a poll this week from CSA for Le Journal du Dimanche, 72 per cent of French people believe that crime is out of control.
This belief is firmest among supporters of the centre-right Républicains at 92 per cent, followed by 83 per cent of National Rally, and 62 per cent of supporters of President Emmanuel Macron’s neo-liberal bloc.
The sentiment was also held by a majority of left-wing voters at 55 per cent overall. This included 58 per cent of supporters of the far-left La France Insoumise party of Jean-Luc Mélenchon and 51 per cent of Socialist voters.
Only Green Party supporters were below a majority, at just 45 per cent, in not believing that the country faces the prospect of becoming like Mexico, where the state loses authority to rogue criminal elements.
The survey found that women were more likely than men to view the situation as out of control, at 76 per cent to 69 per cent, respectively, perhaps as a result of increased concern over crimes like sexual assault.
Age also appears to have a significant effect on the opinion, with 76 per cent of people over 50 years old believing there has been a loss of control, compared to 71 per cent of respondents aged 25 to 44 and just 55 per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds.
The poll was published shortly before the second year of riots, looting, and widespread mayhem on Saturday night following the repeat victory of the Paris Saint-Germain football club in the Champions League Final over London’s Arsenal.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said on Sunday morning that 780 arrests were made across France during the choatic celebrations, an increase of 30 per cent over last year’s victory over Milan in the same tournament.
Commenting on the social decay, National Rally leader Jordan Bardella said on Sunday morning: :In Paris, in Île-de-France as everywhere on the territory, violence and vandalism are multiplying. Groups are targeting public property, businesses, and law enforcement. The modus operandi is always the same: to stone, destroy, and pillage.
“Total support for our police, gendarmes, and firefighters who ensure the country’s protection in the face of an atmospheric violence that has become unbearable. The authority of the State must be upheld everywhere.”
Former Interior Minister and current presidential candidate Bruno Retailleau added: “Let’s be clear-eyed: this crisis of authority will not be resolved without addressing the migratory disorders that have for years fueled the erosion of respect for the law and the weakening of the republican pact.
“France should not have to endure this violence with every trophy. Order is a decision.”