Disneyland Paris is among a group of businesses that have penned an open letter to the French government calling for the establishment of a special police force in Paris to fight crime targeting tourists.
Foreign tourist arrivals have been predicted to fall between 4 and 5 per cent this year – the largest decline in four decades – after multiple attacks from terrorist organisation ISIS have caused safety fears among international visitors. Additionally, Asian tourists have been targeted in a string of robberies, while numerous demonstrations against labour reforms have taken place across the country. Most recently Paris made the headlines when reality TV star Kim Kardashian was robbed at gunpoint.
“The image of France is deeply degraded and, given the scale of the shock, it is likely that 2017 still feel the effects, said the letter, also signed by the likes of Galeries Lafayette, Aéroports de Paris and railway operator SNCF.
“Safety is our chief concern,” continued the letter. “Operational measures, including a special police force to be set up across Paris and its immediate suburbs, will allow our police force to focus on organised gangs such as the petty criminals who prey on tourists.
“When a country of 66 million inhabitants hosts 84 million tourists, it is normal to introduce a special police force.”
The French government last month pledged more aid to its tourism sector, launching a €10m campaign to promote the country abroad after it was estimated that France’s problems had cost the country an estimated €750m (US$847.5m, £640m).
Between January and June 2016, Paris welcomed a million fewer visitors compared with the same period in 2015. Figures from the French capital’s tourist board showed that hotel stays were down 8.5 per cent in the Ile-de-France region, with an 11.5 per cent decline in foreign tourists. Disneyland Paris also felt the sting, with visitor numbers down 11 per cent between April and June.
The tourism sector represents 7 to 8 percent of France's gross domestic product and employs about 2 million people. France is the most-visited country in the world, welcoming around 85 million foreign tourists annually.
