Judicial official seeks ‘social officers’ in schools

1,051 Number of juvenile prosecution cases recorded in 2017

1,403 Number of juvenile prosecution cases recorded in 2016

The main reasons for youngsters assaulting each other include the negative effects of electronic games.”

Atikah Awad Al Kathiri, head of the family, children prosecutions office, Al Ain

abu dhabi — A top judicial official has called for the introduction of a ‘social officer’ in schools to inculcate discipline among children. These officers will be tasked with teaching teens about the importance of tolerance, being law-abiding citizens and traffic safety.

Atikah Awad Al Kathiri, head of the family and children prosecutions office in Al Ain, said: “The main reasons for youngsters assaulting each other include the negative effects of electronic games, especially those that promote acts of violence like killing and assaults; lack of respect for the law; fanaticism and intolerance; and peer pressure, among others.”

She added that school administrators in cooperation with the Department of Education and Knowledge (Adek) should also introduce tougher punishments for students who misbehave, fight or bully others, including suspending them and informing their parents.

She made the comments during a monthly media meeting organised by the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department on Wednesday.

There has been a “significant” decrease in the number of teenagers being prosecuted in Abu Dhabi, according to judicial authorities. The Abu Dhabi Judicial Department said that the total number of juvenile prosecution cases recorded in Abu Dhabi during 2017 was 1,051, a 33 per cent decline compared to the 1,403 cases in 2016.

Traffic-related cases topped the list at 423 in 2017 as compared to 687 in the previous year. This was followed by theft cases, with 229 dealt with in 2017 and 199 in 2016.

About 120 cases reported in 2017 involved teens fighting and assaulting each other, as opposed to 166 in 2016.