French PM announces measures to tackle alarming violence in Corsica

French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault on Monday unveiled a package of new measures to stop alarming violence in the French Island of Corsica after the daylight murder of lawyer Antoine Sollacaro. "Corsica is part of the territory of the Republic. Serious acts taking place (there) are the doings of a small minority that does not respect the principles of the rule of law," Ayrault told reporters. "The government takes its responsibilities and is committed to conducting a large-scale action in time. The current drift must be stopped," he added. To achieve the aim, a 10-point plan was decided at a meeting headed by the prime minister with Justice Minister Christiane Taubira, Interior Minister Manuel Valls, Finance Minister Pierre Moscovici and Budget Minister Jerome Cahuzac. The government wants to strengthen investigative resources on the island with a particular focus on fighting against money laundering, especially in the real estate and sport, the minister said. Last Tuesday, Sollacaro, an advocate with links to Corsica's intertwined worlds of armed nationalism and mafia-style gangs, was shot dead as he stopped at a petrol station in the Island where 15 people were killed so far. Denouncing the incident, French President Francois Hollande stressed that the violence in Corsica was "not acceptable in our republic."