Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo on Monday spoke out about security in Paris amid global coverage of news that Kim Kardashian had been held at gunpoint and robbed in the French capital.
Hidalgo noted that the incident “occurred in a private space” and was not a reflection of safety in the city during Fashion Week.
“It in no way affects the safety of Parisian public spaces … the streets are protected,” she said in a statement, citing the successful “Nuit Blanche” party that took place citywide Saturday night without incident.
“I have every confidence in the police to quickly identify and apprehend the perpetrators,” Hidalgo added.
Her comments followed an interview with Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, her former mayoral opponent and member of Nicolas Sarkozy’s Les Republicains party, which has taken a hard line on security. In an interview, Kosciusko-Morizet had said that the robbery showed “the municipality’s lack of reaction to deal with new threats.”
NKM, as she’s known in French political circles, also expressed concern for Kardashian and the impact on Paris tourism. “My thoughts are with Kim because what happened to her is violent and traumatic,” Kosciusko-Morizet said. “And I’m also concerned about the image of Paris.”
She said the city has invested hundreds of thousands of euros on a tourism campaign that won’t be able to make up for all the negative headlines following the Kardashian robbery. “All these advertisements are canceled by what happened to Kim Kardashian,” she concluded.
Tourism to Paris has been down about 6.4 percent over the summer, according to the regional tourism board, following the terrorist attacks in January and November of last year.
