Sir, - We refer to the appalling murder of Veronica Guerin in Clondalkin. This appalling act is symptomatic of the evil sub culture of criminal activity involving major crime and drug dealing, which is sadly taking root in Irish society.
Years of state neglect has created an environment where such activity as murder festers. Murder rates are rising rapidly. The warning signs have been apparent for years despair in communities, young people leaving the educational system in their thousands, the provision of no real alternative. Despair and second generation unemployment turning to heroin addiction. The signs were all there.
Irish politicians and society in general naively believed that Ireland was somehow different. We now have the same drug problems, crime rates, murder rates, as any major city in Europe. Without a shadow of a doubt we are harvesting the seeds of despair in many of Dublin's black spots.
In the past three months we have been meeting with community workers and parents with regard to a major proposal for all black spots. We are aware of a number of areas in the inner city and suburbs where there will be riots and a complete breakdown of law and order unless radical intervention takes place now. In the last two days I have been in areas where riots will occur, where people - good people out of despair will cross over the line and march on drug dealers' homes. People will take the law into their own hands.
There is an alternative: full and immediate implementation of the Line Projects proposal, a radical proposal to work with up to 2,000 young people who are at risk, most of whom will be early school leavers, unemployed, involved in drug abuse (the heroin addicts of tomorrow), any one of whom could become a killer.
Society must declare war on drugs and crime, and the best way to fight it is at community level. Society is breaking down, and politicians are sleeping. Yours, etc.,
The Line Projects, John Player House, South Circular Road, Dublin 8.