Editorial: Crime crackdown should be everybody’s business

UNLESS you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years, you’ll know parts of the NT are dealing with serious crime problems

• Push to establish monitored “wet camp” in Darwin for itinerants
• Calls for action on itinerant drinkers at Mindil Beach

UNLESS you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years, you’ll know parts of the NT are dealing with serious crime problems.

Almost daily, we are hearing or reading about bashings or street violence.

The latest crime statistics from NT Police also reflect this.

The figures show assaults are up by 21 per cent across the Territory.

Meanwhile, the rates of alcohol-related assaults are increasing and have jumped by about 54 per cent in Palmerston and 55 per cent in Tennant Creek.

Looking at surveys from Larrakia Nation over the past six months, we know alcohol-related call-outs have spiked by 60 per cent.

Patrollers say they have been flat out with call outs recently as Darwin’s itinerant population soars this Wet.

Sadly, almost every call they get these days is alcohol-related, and they often end up on the receiving end of abuse.

Its become an issue to big to ignore and even the Chief Minister this week acknowledged there was a growing problem with the secondary supply of alcohol in parts of Darwin, including his own electorate.

The sobering up shelter in town is already full most nights.

We need to address this problem at its source.

Police need to crack down on secondary supply hard before this becomes an even bigger issue.

But cops can only do so much; the general public also need to take it on ourselves to report sus activity when we see it by calling 131444.

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