Some aids to fighting crime

Jul 19, 2013 Letters

Dear Editor
In response to your editorial in today’s edition captioned ‘Tackling the crime situation’ I am in agreement with your submission. However, I will go further in saying that there is a need to have a more comprehensive approach in reducing crime. The three crime prevention measures situational, social and tertiary crime prevention must work together in helping to reduce crime.
You mention CCTV. This is one measure of situational crime prevention and it works to some extent as you mention that some of the cameras are of very poor quality and that some are badly position. Although this might be true, research has shown that CCTV are more effective when an impulse crime occur that is a petty thief ran into a business establishment grab money or a item and run this is where CCTV is known to be more effective.
The thief is not aware that CCTV is installed on the premises therefore more than likely he will be caught on camera. On the other hand where you have the professional criminal who will stake out a business establishment to the see how many cameras are installed how they are position before they commit the crime.
When entering the building the bandits know how to position themselves not to be captured on camera. This is one of the ways how CCTV is less effective in crime prevention.
Alarms systems are very important also in preventing or even helping in capturing the bandit. This system must be properly monitored by an response team who upon receiving the alarm contact the business place quickly gather the most import information and relay that information to their rapid response team and the police.
Training of staff in security awareness is important and in my opinion one of the best situational crime prevention measure. Well alert staff will be able to spot a suspicious persons and raise the necessary alert will prevent a robbery.
The hiring of private security is another aspect. Many smaller businesses might not be in a good financial position to hire private security. The police must be more proactive as you mentioned. Plainclothes police should be in the hotspot areas and uniform officers could be making visits in and out of stores randomly. There are other situational crime prevention measures that can be adopted and these will depend on the situation.
Social crime prevention is very important. Government cannot do all in reducing crime. The government of the day has a social responsibility to its citizens. However, expenditure at some times will not allow for wide social programmes. This is where the business sector should play a more active role.
In some run down communities businesses should, through their marketing departments, be willing to enter these communities and sponsor certain activities for the youth such as cricket, football, netball or any other activity. This has helped reduce crime, especially if the business is located near the depressed community.
Wherever possible businesses should engage in many clean up exercise within the more depress communities and where ever possible give jobs to those in the area. The various social clubs should make donations in helping the various youths who have been marginalized to have some form of technical skill.
Finally tertiary crime prevention is our judicial system which plays a very pivotal role in our society in helping to reduce crime. In your last paragraph you mention that victims are reluctant in identify the criminal when they are caught. There are many reasons why victims refuse to identify the bandit. They believe that the wheels of justice are too slow.
Some victims believed that the courts see them as the bandit and the bandit as the victim. Person should be educated in how the judicial systems works in order that that can fully appreciate the way our legal system works.
Morris Springer

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Some aids to fighting crime

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