Having officers on Facebook is of little comfort to the elderly
A tangible link between local communities and the people who protect them is vital in crime fight, says Niall Collins
THE most basic duty of any state is to provide for the safety and security of its citizens. However, on Budget day, Justice Minister Alan Shatter arguably betrayed this fundamental role as he attempted to quietly announce the news that he is to close an additional 100 garda stations across the country, on top of the 39 that have already gone. He has talked about redeployment and greater use of Twitter and Facebook, but the spin is convincing no one.
The basic security infrastructure of the State, a garda station in the local community, is being systematically stripped away from communities across Ireland. While he sat on the opposition benches, Shatter styled himself as the champion of law and order and declared that criminals would be “toasting” a modest reduction in garda numbers.
This Christmas, thanks to his assault on the garda infrastructure, they will be toasting the complete transformation of Alan Shatter from the law and order candidate into a minister that's dismantling a community safety network that has taken generations to build.
At a time when people are facing a PRSI income tax hike and an ill-thought out and unfair family home tax, they are also witnessing the most basic service of security being removed from their communities. This disconnect between the increased contributions
‘These closures come at a time when burglary rates are surging’
that families are making and the degradation of the services they get in return is infuriating and depressing communities everywhere.
When the minister and government colleagues mutter about the troika and the need to balance the country's finances, they need to be reminded that they themselves have acknowledged that this programme of closures is not going to save money. It is therefore unclear why this decision has been made — it could not be about saving money and the spin that it will see more gardai on the streets is completely bogus.
This latest plan has all the hallmarks of a scheme dreamed up by desk-bound civil servants with little exposure to the reality of life in vulnerable urban and rural communities. My attempts to get a coherent defence from anyone in government, least of all Mr Shatter, have been unsuccessful to date. Unfortunately, while Mr Shatter has many admirable qualities, I have yet to detect humility and a willingness to admit mistakes among them.
My fear is that this assault on stations will have a very real effect on the feelings of safety and security across the country, and the community cohesion that goes with it. The local garda station is an integral part of the fabric of a community. Even Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan has conceded that the closures will impact upon communities. The station is the physical pillar of the gardai across Ireland. That connection between communities and the people who protect them is a crucial part of tackling crime and the roots of crime.
Strong relationships with localities and the knowledge that comes with that are the essence of good policing. Communities should know the local garda, based in the local station and appreciate the security that they represent.
Mr Shatter's plans directly jeopardise that long-established, well trusted and particularly Irish model of policing.
The threat of crime is all too real to ordinary people on the ground and these closures come at a time when burglary rates are surging across the country. The latest CSO statistics show how burglary and related offences rose by a disturbing 10.3 per cent in the year to June 2012, compared with the previous year.
We have all read and been deeply saddened and shocked by stories of lonely elderly people being targeted by ruthless criminal gangs breaking into their homes. Does Mr Shatter really think that our seniors will take comfort from being told to find their garda on Facebook?
It was not a politician, but rather the representatives of the rankand-file gardai across the country who described Mr Shatter as being “soft on crime, soft on the cause of crime and soft on the proceeds of crime”. As we watch him systematically dismantle the policing infrastructure that we have been building since the foundation of the State, it is impossible to disagree. As the criminals watch his transformation, it is unlikely that they disapprove.