The Fairland CPF Youth Desk has launched with calls for support

Wayne Fitzgibbon from Fairland writes:

Our Fairland CPF Youth Crime Prevention Desk has recently been formed.

It is a volunteer-based structure comprising of youth between the ages of 18 and 27. We are based at the Fairland Police Station under the mentorship of Sergeant Maggie Mushasha.

ALSO READ: Fairland CPF Victim Support Unit share their progress for the month

Young people are a key target group as both victims and perpetrators of crime.

The Youth Desk encourages young people to participate actively in community projects, identifying the causes of crime and violence among the youth in our precinct, and provides a platform for social crime prevention strategies in partnership with SAPS and other role players.

ALSO READ: Fairland CPF speaks out on displaced people living in the area

Our focus is on problematic issues such as crime and drug abuse, and to encourage our youth to act as role models as we believe this is where our future leaders will emanate from.

For now, our primary activity is on school safety, the prevention of substance abuse, and the prevention of violence against women and children.

We have found that younger persons are sometimes reluctant to speak to adults about things that affect them. Therefore, we act as liaison between the youth and the law enforcement.

Our Youth Desk works in collaboration with the CPF to help us understand the mechanics of how a CPF functions and to recognise the needs of our community.

ALSO READ: Fairland CPF learns valuable lessons on rape

Our target areas for recruitment are schools and colleges in our precinct. The greatest challenge is not only to attract new members, but to retain community-centred people who are willing to sacrifice their time and resources on a sustained basis.

We find that once students leave to further their education we are left with a void. It is mainly for this reason that the age group for Youth Desk membership has been extended to persons up to the age of 27.

ALSO READ: Fairland CPF invites community to fundraising market

Under current socio-economic conditions crime will not simply go away. We need to empower our youth to face the challenge, to help them understand the psyche of criminal behaviour, to help us identify crime hotspots and to address criminal and social issues.

The future of our country depends on building a foundation for our youth to become responsible adults and leaders we can aspire to. We thus appeal to parents and teachers to encourage our youth to enrol and actively participate in our programmes.

ALSO READ: Fairland CPF Market Day to be hosted soon