NO QUICK ANSWERS TO STREET VIOLENCE

Editor:

There is a real concern about criminal gangs associated with the drug
trade. Is the political response of longer jail sentences the only
answer to this very pressing problem? I agree with swift justice for
those at the top of these gang structures, but are the poor and
uneducated going to be the first to be convicted by these tougher sentences?

The 2007 edition of a publication put out by the Canadian Association
of the Chiefs of Police (CAPC) reported on an International Congress
on Street Gangs.

Some of the conclusions of the congress were:

There are many reasons why young people join street gangs. The experts
still do not have the answers.

We cannot arrest our way out of the problem. The police are only one
part of the solution.

There is no short-term answer to the problem of street gangs. There
must be enforcement with strong prevention over a generation.

In conclusion I believe that we as a community have to look deeply
into our society for solutions. It has been known for years that lack
of education and poverty can be casual factors for crime. Are we
tackling the reasons for poverty and lack of education in the right
way? Do we have the resources to work toward solutions of gang
violence and the drug trade?

Joe Haddock

Prince George