Cops unite in effort to stamp out ugly violence fuelled by alcohol

MORE than 100 police officers were on the beat across the Territory over the weekend as part of an Australia and New Zealand-wide operation aiming to stamp out alcoholrelated violence.

NT police were generally happy with the behaviour of Territorians on the first night of the annual Operation Unite overnight on Friday in which 137 officers hit the street.

Duty Superintendent Jo Foley said the police blitz aimed to challenge alcohol misuse, crime, violence and antisocial behaviour.

She said there were seven alcohol-related arrests across the Territory on Friday night and eight non-alcohol-related arrests, as well as one reported minor assault. There were 11 people caught drinkdriving, two of which recorded mid-range levels and the rest low-range.

She said a 25-year-old Karama man reported being punched in the face by an un- known person on Mitchell St at 4am yesterday and suffered minor injuries. Police are investigating the incident.

Other than these incidents, people were well-behaved.

‘‘Police want to thank the public for their behaviour and it is really important we see this continue, particularly over the Christmas period when people can easily overdo it with alcohol,’’ Supt Foley said. ‘‘It can actually be a more stressful time of the year than people realise.

‘‘But it is also a time that people can reflect on the good things in life and reflect on themselves and their behaviour.

‘‘Drinking alcohol comes with responsibilities. And people being violent after drinking is one of the most destructive things we see in society.

‘‘You need to think about what sort of person you are when grog is added and if that is who you really want to be.’’

Operation Unite continued last night.