Accord on crime wave, but not on a solution

MANY local newspaper editors used their leader columns to describe "the anger and fear of citizens who have been badly let down", as the Westmeath Examiner put it. The crime wave was overwhelmingly the topic of concern among editors many of whom agreed, with the Examiner which believed it deserved a completely new approach" by gardai and legislators.

"In all the verbiage, promises, temporary cosmetic action, there is nothing to stop another three or four such murders of innocent people tomorrow or the next day," it said.

But what can be done? The Anglo Celt's headline was blunt "Hang the Murderers" Reporting on Cavan County Council's "get tough approach", it said "execute murderers and Wake the punishment fit the crime was the tone of a lengthy council debate.

It ended in all party approval for a motion calling for increased powers for gardai, the removal of the right to silence of a suspect in serious crimes, the review of the bail laws, the consideration of public corporal punishment for some crimes and community service rather than jail terms for petty criminals.

In an editorial, the Anglo Celt said "Solutions conceived in anger are seldom appropriate or lasting." The "short period of concentrated evil" which we were experiencing had understandably caused public anger and apprehension, but bail laws should not be changed quickly in reaction to national anger.

The Midland Tribune also advised that changes should be long term and well considered. "A sustained effort (to tackle, crime on an ongoing basis must be implemented and should not be just a reaction to terrible attacks like those witnessed in recent months."

Yet still other newspapers called for a "get tough fast" policy. In its editorial, "Getting Tough with the Thugs", the Meath Chronicle said "The Lord Mayor of Cork, Joe O'Callaghan, spoke for the plain, ordinary and law abiding people of Ireland last week when he bluntly stated Savage crimes deserve savage jail sentences.

"This tough message is being echoed on the streets, in homes, pubs and in shops all over Ireland this week as the country comes to terms with a shocking week of murders three within the space of 72 hours ...

"Those who use violence in the commission of crime deserve nothing more than to be locked behind bars and have the key dropped down the nearest drain. For having shown no mercy to their victims, neither should they have any mercy shown to them."

HE Tipperary Star, too, stretched to convey the fearful mood of the people. "Harrowing incidents of naked brutality have resulted in fear stalking a nation which has heretofore prided itself on the relative safety with which its people could go about their normal business and routine," it said.

"Bunt it is not just the spiralling upsurge in crime which has served to instil such fear. It is the savagery and brutality now being meted out with little apparent compunction. The value of life has become almost meaningless in the determination to satisfy whatever cravings such warped minds desire."

Perhaps more than most, Co Kildare's newspapers also felt the changed mood from one of safety and security to one of 24 hour apprehension. "The number of violent deaths in Co Kildare has increased dramatically and, on average, there has been a killing once every three months during the past year," the Leinster Leader told us.

"Horror is the word which perhaps best sums up the feeling throughout Co Kildare in the past week, as one area of the country became the centre of yet another tragedy," it said.

"The media is often accused of exaggerating, of playing to the public gallery in the bid to draw the maximum effect from events, especially events which evoke terror and horror among ordinary citizens ... Yet the reality is that when such events occur, they need to be properly confronted by society as a whole.

"If the full picture is one of an escalating crime graph, where the relative violence and viciousness of offences is constantly on the rise, then this is not an issue from which any sector of society can run away."

The underlying social issues of crime would not be addressed overnight, "but in the shorter term, those who promote tougher legislation have to have their voices heard now".

The days of "the door on the latch" are gone, the Connacht Tribune said. "Ireland will be the poorer for the loss of these more innocent days."

Also rejecting arguments that "the present situation is media hype", the Connacht Tribune called for more visible "on the ground" policing not just the high profile visibility of an Alouette helicopter hovering over the west. It also thought Neighbourhood Watch should be reinforced.

"Society must also look at contacting all of the elderly people living in its midst and ensuring that they are safe and have a feeling of security," it said.