A college in Marseille, France’s second-largest city, will temporarily close its central teaching premises due to the growing danger of drug trafficking in the surrounding area, prompting authorities to promise an increased police presence on Wednesday, AFP reported on Wednesday.

A port city marked by severe inequality, Marseille has been plagued by drug trafficking for decades. But the level of violence to control the points of sale of these illegal substances is increasing, as in other cities in France.

And “after months of concern and anxiety, the dean of the Colbert Faculty of Economics and Management in Marseille has taken the decision to close the access of students and staff to this building due to insufficient security,” the president wrote. university Eric Burton in a letter to the prefect of the department and the prefect of police, as well as to the prosecutor and the mayor of Marseille.

Employees and students of this institution will work remotely from Friday until October 13. A solution that can be continued.

“It is about (…) condemning the unsanitary and unsafe conditions around the faculty,” explained the dean of the faculty, Bruno Decrese, on Wednesday in front of the sites located near the Old Town, the historic center of the city.

According to the dean, approximately 1,500 students, 170 professors and dozens of administrative staff study at this branch of the university located in a poor neighborhood.

A medical and psychological center was closed a few hundred meters away in July because of drug dealers. And for several days, the municipal kindergarten nearby was closed, again due to security concerns.

“This summer there is an outlet that has grown a lot. All day long we hear them shouting to sell their wares, as if they were selling fish,” an employee told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Students expressed concern on Wednesday, hoping to act to restore the faculty and create a more peaceful environment.

The police promise to strengthen law enforcement measures to protect students

The decision prompted police chief Frederic Camilleri to call a meeting Wednesday afternoon with representatives of the university and the city of Marseille, at the end of which she announced a “permanent and increased police presence today” as well as “patrols around the area.”

“There can be no question of the civil service giving way to these businessmen,” she assured. In another part of the city, police officers are stationed near an elementary school, also very close to a place where drugs are sold.

Similarly, Deputy Mayor for Security Yanik Hovhannesian said it would be unacceptable “to see the slightest suspension of public service amid violence,” promising to work to reopen a nearby kindergarten “under better security conditions.”