In the north of France in Amiens on the night of August 14-15, 2012, pogroms, arsons and fights with the police occurred. Street gangs have long become a serious problem for all major world cities. The incident in French Amiens is associated with the frustration of young people from disadvantaged areas, who are expecting a change for the better from the cabinet of François Hollande.
The reason for the first skirmishes with the police was a tragic incident in which a 20-year-old young man who tried to leave the patrol was killed. After his death on August 12, youth motorcycle groups gathered to discuss what had happened. They behaved aggressively, the traffic police tried to call the hooligans to order, but this ended in massive fights. By Monday, special squads (CRS) were mobilized, which also could not cope with the gangs. The attack aircraft opened fire from various firearms.
16 policemen were injured the night of Tuesday to Wednesday. After this, Manuel Waltz, the French Minister of the Interior, arrived in Amiens. But, despite the reinforced police detachments, young people from the “problem” areas do not give up their positions and continue to “partisan” sorties with a pogrom of shop windows and arson of cars.
Crowds of angry young people demanded that the minister stop the police arbitrariness. Many local residents support the slogans of unsettled youth; they would prefer that the government care about creating jobs and educating young people than about strengthening and arming the storm troopers.
But Manuel Waltz intends to demand from the government an increase in police, greatly reduced during the presidency of Sarkozy. The minister believes that this is the only way to deal with urban motorized gangs that quickly move through the streets, rob residents, damage shops and attack patrols.
Damage to Amiens as a result of this incident amounts to millions of euros. During these August nights, three large public buildings, dozens of cars, hundreds of garbage cans, and one school were burned. Francois Hollande identified 15 priority security zones in France, where special police forces will be concentrated to fight street gangs.
It turns out that the dialogue between the French government and dysfunctional youth again begins with a position of strength.
