French Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin promises a "radical transformation of the penal system". This model is borrowed from the Italian fight against the mafia in the 1990s, writes ARD. For this purpose, two new prisons will be opened in France. One - Vondan le Vieille has already opened its doors, and the other - Conde sur Sarthe - is about to be opened.
450 video cameras have been installed in Vondan le Vieille to monitor prisoners. There is no direct contact in the rooms for external visits - only via intercom. After each visit, prisoners are searched and must undress for this purpose. Mobile phones and drones cannot operate in and around the prison.
The aim is to completely isolate the prisoners, explains Justice Minister Darmanin. "We know that drug traffickers, who we believe have close ties to organized crime, continue to communicate with the outside world. Even when they are in isolated areas of the prisons, they organize their deals and money laundering operations from there, they announce rewards for the heads of prosecutors and police officers." 100 prisoners are to be transferred to Vondan le Vieille, with another 100 to be transferred to the other new prison in October.
"Freedom from the drug trafficking trap"
The maximum security prisons are part of a change in legislation aimed at reducing drug trafficking in France, writes ARD. The country's constitutional court approved the bill in June, provided that the prisoners' links to organized crime are proven.
The law aims to "free France from the trap of drug trafficking", including by creating a special prosecutor's office for organized crime. Criminals who cooperate with the authorities will be given the opportunity for lighter sentences. Municipalities will be able to temporarily close shops if there are concerns that money from drug deals is being laundered there. The French Ministry of Economy estimates that 200,000 people in France make a living from drug trafficking. The annual income from these activities is 3.5 billion euros, and according to other estimates - even six billion.
Drug trafficking problems are growing
In 2024, the Senate presented a report on drug trafficking in the country. According to the data in it, criminal networks have become more flexible, and competition for territory has become fiercer, writes ARD. The number of crimes has increased significantly - between 80 and 90 percent of murders and attempted murders can be linked to drug trafficking.
The French media constantly report on clashes, shootings and attacks between different drug gangs, including in smaller cities such as Grenoble and Nimes. Again and again, people who have nothing to do with drug trafficking or crime become victims of such crimes.
Are fundamental rights respected?
However, scholars such as Yann Bizyu express doubts that maximum security prisons will fundamentally change the problems associated with drug trafficking. The researcher deals with policies to counter this crime at the University of Montpellier. "One of the questions that arises is what exactly these prisons will be used for", says Bizyu.
According to the expert, there are other legal steps that could be taken to limit prisoners' communication with the outside world. This was also emphasized by the Council of State, France's highest administrative court, in its preliminary assessment: "This new law will only lead to the fact that drug criminals will be detained in one place - under extremely strict conditions that constitute an infringement of fundamental rights," said Bizyu.
The government is also planning further prisons
For example, it is completely unclear what criteria will be used to decide which criminals will be sent to the maximum security prisons, continues Bizyu. A number of lawyers have pointed out that the possibilities for appealing the transfer to Vondan le Vieille are insufficient, writes ARD. The fact that contacts with the prisoners' families will be drastically limited also became a reason for criticism.
According to Bizyu, however, the most striking example is the systematic searches of prisoners after their contacts with people outside and for which they have to undress: "In my opinion, this is a huge problem for both the attitude towards fundamental rights and the rights of prisoners".
The lawyer of a drug trafficker who is to be transferred to Vondan le Vieille has already filed a complaint against Justice Minister Darmanin for ignoring the demands of the Constitutional Council. However, this does not seem to impress the minister: he wants to create "four to five" maximum security prisons by 2027.
Author: Caroline Dilla (ARD)