People have buried their heads in the sand under the guise of political correctness, rather than tackling the youth gang crisis gripping the state, a western suburbs lawyer has claimed.
Hayden Legro is calling for a youth summit in Melbourne’s west, bringing to the table local, state and federal government representatives, welfare workers, immigration officials, police, youth workers and community leaders.
The summit must be convened in the western suburbs and focus on the particular issues facing young people in this region, Mr Legro told Star Weekly.
He stressed the urgency of such a move after reports a group of about 30 teenagers gatecrashed a recent Caroline Springs festival and stole mobile phones.
“The government, sadly, simply wants to build more prisons to deal with the problem,” Mr Legro said. “This seems a defeatist and a political response to a much deeper issue.
“A gathering of key stakeholders … is required to focus on this issue in a comprehensive, not a piecemeal, way.”
Mr Legro said he is concerned that, if underlying issues aren’t dealt with, there could be serious consequences in the near future, including vigilante groups taking the law into their own hands, or a backlash against ethnic minorities.
In the 12 months to September 2016, there were 336 crimes involving young people reported in Melton – 9.3 per cent of overall offences. While this was a slight increase from the year before (244), it was a decline from 2014, Crime Statistics Agency data shows.
Melton council community services general manager Maurie Heaney said a youth summit is something the council would support.
He said the council ran a number of programs and support services for young people, including the Reconnect program, which helps young people at risk of homelessness, and the youth mentoring program, which links “disconnected” youth with an adult mentor.
“The youth services team also participates in a wide range of community events, including Djerriwarrh festival, Summersault, and MyCity, My Say listening posts,” he said.
Meanwhile federal Liberal MP Jason Wood has called for anti-gang squads to be permanently located in Melbourne’s west and south-east. The squads would be made up of Victoria Police and Australian Federal Police officers, immigration officials, and Sudanese and Islander youth workers.
“This is just going to get worse – early intervention is key,” Mr Wood said.
